House gives itself more time to fix budget

Lawmakers voted on Wednesday to push back their Friday funding deadline while party leaders negotiate a new economic stimulus plan. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif, have said they want to include COVID-19 relief in the overall federal spending plan, which must now be approved by Friday, Dec. 18, to avoid a government shutdown.

What are the main sticking points? The two sides have haggled over direct payments to Americans and renewing additional unemployment benefits. Republicans want to shield businesses from liability for coronavirus-related lawsuits, while Democrats want to give state and local governments more than $100 billion in aid. McConnell offered to drop the liability shield provision if Pelosi would yield on state and local government funding, but Democrats balked at the idea. The Senate is expected to vote tomorrow on extending the budget deadline and on a military spending bill that the House approved but President Donald Trump has threatened to veto.

Dig deeper: Read Harvest Prude’s report in The Stew about how Republicans gained House seats in November’s election.