RESCUE-FUND negotiations pick up.

WASHINGTON — With a key coronavirus rescue fund nearly exhausted, negotiations are accelerating in Washington over President Donald Trump’s $250 billion emergency request to help smaller employers across the country keep workers on their payrolls.

Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin spoke Wednesday morning about legislation to shore up a paycheck subsidy program that has nearly reached its $349 billion lending limit. House and Senate aides were set to meet with Treasury Department officials later in the day.

Reaching a deal won’t be easy. The Capitol is largely shuttered, requiring consensus from all sides for any legislation to be approved, and GOP leaders are vowing to stick closely to Trump’s request despite Democratic demands.

But the unprecedented legislative environment gives Democrats considerable influence, even if their funding requests for hospitals and state and local governments may have to be scaled back significantly or dropped, at least for now. Democrats blocked a fast-track bid to approve the funding last week, and Republicans in turn stymied Democratic efforts for additional funding for other priorities in a brief debate.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., had no comment, according to spokesman David Popp. The Senate is away from Washington through May 4, though it convenes twice each week for pro forma sessions that could be used to approve more coronavirus aid — though only if no senator objects.

With leaders unable to readily summon lawmakers to Washington, the usual power dynamics are scrambled, especially in the House. For example, Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., can stymie legislation more easily than if members are present, and Pelosi cannot rule the House with her typical tight grip.

“Tell Chuck Schumer and Nancy Pelosi to STOP blocking critical funding for small businesses. The Paycheck Protection Program is about to run out of money — millions of jobs are hanging in the balance. Congress MUST ACT!” McCarthy wrote Tuesday on Twitter.

At issue is the nearly $350 billion paycheck protection program that’s a centerpiece of last month’s $2.2 trillion rescue bill. The program gives grants to businesses with fewer than 500 workers so they can maintain payroll and pay rent while shutting down their businesses to follow social-distancing edicts.

The program is quickly running dry after being open for only a matter of days, though it’s unclear how much money has actually been distributed to businesses. Mnuchin says an additional $250 billion is needed immediately.

But Democrats want money for hospitals burdened under covid-19 caseloads, as well as additional funding for states and local governments that are feeling the strain as the economy slides into recession. Democrats also want to make sure the paycheck protection program is opened up more to businesses that don’t have established relationships with banks that have been accepting applications for rescue funding.

The outlook for the legislation is unclear, and negotiators may not be able to meet a potential deadline of this afternoon’s pro forma session.

Also on Wednesday, Trump threatened to shut down both chambers of Congress to allow him to fill vacancies in his administration without Senate approval.

Trump spent several minutes of his daily coronavirus briefing Wednesday blaming Senate Democrats for blocking his nominations, even though most of the vacancies in the federal government are because Trump hasn’t selected anyone to fill them. Several of his nominees haven’t been given a confirmation hearing yet in the Republican-led Senate.

Trump cited a neverexercised power the Constitution grants the president to adjourn Congress if leaders of the House and Senate can’t agree on whether to adjourn. The Senate often recesses but stays open in the pro forma sessions, which thwart Trump’s ability to make recess appointments that bypass the regular confirmation process.

“The current practice of leaving town while conducting phony pro forma sessions is a dereliction of duty that the American people cannot afford during this crisis. It is a scam. What they do, it’s a scam and everybody knows it,” Trump said.

Information for this article was contributed by Andrew Taylor and Laurie Kellman of The Associated Press and by Colby Itkowitz and Erica Werner of The Washington Post.