U.S. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday he’s open to calling the Senate back to Washington if Democrats are willing to budge on another round of coronavirus stimulus spending.
Speaking in Hazard, the Kentucky Republican said all parties agree an additional stimulus package is needed; his disagreement with the Democratic leadership is on how much to spend.
Democrats in the House passed a $3 trillion dollar spending package; Republicans have proposed $1 trillion in spending.
“Hopefully we can overcome these partisan passions that are getting in the way and come together to do what’s needed for the American people,” McConnell said.
McConnell said he would consider calling the Senate back to Washington early from summer recess if progress was made on a way forward.
President Donald Trump has said $3.6 billion in funding for the United States Postal Service included in the Democrats’ bill was a non-starter in ongoing coronavirus stimulus talks.
McConnell spoke minutes after an announcement from the beleaguered U.S. Postmaster General, Louis DeJoy, who faced criticism after appearing to deliberately slow down mail service in advance of a national election that will take place in large part through mail-in ballots. DeJoy announced there would be no unscheduled changes to Postal Service policies until after the November election.
“I think the postmaster general settled it today,” McConnell said. “He said even though these changes were in the process of being implemented unrelated to this election, he was going to make no changes at all until after the election just to reassure everybody. The post office is going to be fine; mail-in ballots are going to be fine.”
The senator spoke at the Appalachian Regional Hospital in Hazard, which received $19 million in CARES Act funding to cope with financial hardships associated with the pandemic.Â
