Stimulus Update: Nancy Pelosi Calls for Republicans to ‘Come Back to the Table’

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is continuing to push for a largescale stimulus relief package as votes continue to be tallied in the 2020 presidential election. With Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden now leading in several key states — a recount has been ordered in Georgia and there is still time for President Donald Trump to make up lost ground — Pelosi, in a press conference held Friday morning, called on Republicans to “come back” to the negotiation table to hash out a final package.

Addressing a room of reporters, Pelosi, who is formally seeking another two years as Speaker of the House, said that “while we prepare for the new Biden administration, we must also move swiftly for a new coronavirus relief bill.” She went on to call on Republicans “to come back to the table.” Pelosi, for the past several weeks, has been negotiating details of an additional package with Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

In her Thursday remarks, Pelosi, noting the dire need for immediate relief, pointed to the fact that “for two days in a row,” more than 100,000 coronavirus cases have been reported. She also said that there are “nearly 9.5 million people infected, nearly a quarter-million deaths, and tens of millions on unemployment,” numbers that were echoed in her statement on the October job’s report. The house speaker said that “the imperative to act could not be greater,” adding, “again, I’m calling on the administration to come back to the table.”

Her remarks came just two days after Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, who won his re-election bid for a seventh six-year Senate term, said that “we need another rescue package” and that “we need to do it before the end of the year.” Many lawmakers had initially been hoping for a relief package to be passed before Election Day, though as that date approached, a new goalpost for a package had largely been left up in the air.

In her statement on the October job’s report, Pelosi vowed that “House Democrats will continue working toward an agreement that crushes the virus, supports our heroes in state and local government and puts money in the pockets of the American people.” Although funding for state and local governments had initially been objected to be many Republicans, McConnell has since thawed on the idea. It is unclear when a potential stimulus relief package could be passed, though lawmakers have expressed hope that the lame-duck session will allow progress to be made.