Biden, Republicans open stimulus talks

A group of moderate GOP senators headed to the White House on Monday afternoon with a proposal for $618 billion in coronavirus economic aid. President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion plan dwarfs the Republicans’ offer, but the two sides came together in hopes of starting negotiations and meeting somewhere in the middle.

What do the plans entail? Both parties would pump federal funds into vaccine distribution and COVID-19 testing. Biden also wants more money for schools and state and local governments. The president would like to give Americans additional stimulus payments of $1,400, while the GOP caps those at $1,000 and targets the neediest taxpayers. They hope to have an agreement by March, when extra unemployment assistance and other pandemic aid expires.

Dig deeper: Read Harvest Prude’s report in The Stew about the role of political moderates in Congress.