Pelosi pushes ahead on bill:

Even in absentia, House Democrats are seeking to drive the debate on the fifth coronavirus response bill, promising to produce a megapackage stuffed with Democratic priorities even as a chorus of GOP leaders voices hesitation about more spending.

Pelosi promises that the Democraticcontrolled House will deliver legislation to help state and local governments through the COVID-19 crisis, along with additional money for direct payments to individuals, unemployment insurance and a third install

ment of aid to small businesses. The amount of funding is to be determined.

The California Democrat is leading the way as Democrats fashion a sweeping

package that is expected to be unveiled soon even as the House stays closed while the Senate is open in the pandemic.

The contours of the next package are taking shape despite Republican resistance to more spending and a deepening debate over how best to confront the pandemic and its economic devastation. Some Republicans such as Sen. Mitt Romney of Utah and a group of GOP governors want to be more generous to states confronting furloughs and cuts to services as revenues plummet and unemployment insurance and other costs spike.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Tuesday it’s time to push “pause” on more aid legislation – even as he repeated a “red line” demand that any new aid package include liability protections for hospitals, health care providers and businesses operating and reopening. (AP)