Congress getting close to a coronavirus relief deal, including smaller stimulus checks


After months and months of negotiations, Congress may finally have a coronavirus deal.
Earlier Wednesday, congressional leaders pledged to stay in Washington until they passed a coronavirus stimulus bill and a package to fund the government. But they may not have to stay late after all, as Politico reports negotiators are "on the brink" of a new coronavirus relief bill that includes direct stimulus payments to Americans.
The last coronavirus relief bill expired at the end of July, and some of its unemployment provisions were set to run out at the end of December. A breakthrough in stagnating negotiations came last month as a group of bipartisan senators worked out a $760 billion relief package that Democratic leaders and some Republicans agreed to support. As of Wednesday, that package has increased to $900 billion, but details are scant, CNN reports. It will likely exclude the liability shield for businesses facing coronavirus-related lawsuits that Democrats opposed, as well as local and state funding Republicans weren't fans of. And while senators on both sides of the aisle demanded another round of stimulus checks, they may not be happy with how small they are.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.), one of the centrist senators who organized the original bipartisan bill, affirmed to CNN on Wednesday that congressional negotiators will "maybe" agree to some direct payments "in lieu of state and local" funding. He wasn't sure exactly how much the checks would be, but said they "wouldn't be more than $1,200," and would likely be in the "$500-600 range." Kathryn Krawczyk
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.
-
September 14 editorial cartoons
Cartoons Sunday’s political cartoons include RFK Jr on the hook, the destruction of discourse, and more
-
Air strikes in the Caribbean: Trump’s murky narco-war
Talking Point Drug cartels ‘don’t follow Marquess of Queensberry Rules’, but US military air strikes on speedboats rely on strained interpretation of ‘invasion’
-
Crossword: September 14, 2025
The Week's daily crossword puzzle
-
House posts lewd Epstein note attributed to Trump
Speed Read The estate of Jeffrey Epstein turned over the infamous 2003 birthday note from President Donald Trump
-
Supreme Court allows 'roving' race-tied ICE raids
Speed Read The court paused a federal judge's order barring agents from detaining suspected undocumented immigrants in LA based on race
-
South Korea to fetch workers detained in Georgia raid
Speed Read More than 300 South Korean workers detained in an immigration raid at a Hyundai plant will be released
-
DC sues Trump to end Guard 'occupation'
Speed Read D.C. Attorney General Brian Schwalb argues that the unsolicited military presence violates the law
-
RFK Jr. faces bipartisan heat in Senate hearing
Speed Read The health secretary defended his leadership amid CDC turmoil and deflected questions about the restricted availability of vaccines
-
White House defends boat strike as legal doubts mount
Speed Read Experts say there was no legal justification for killing 11 alleged drug-traffickers
-
Epstein accusers urge full file release, hint at own list
speed read A rally was organized by Reps. Ro Khanna and Thomas Massie, who are hoping to force a vote on their Epstein Files Transparency Act
-
Court hands Harvard a win in Trump funding battle
Speed Read The Trump administration was ordered to restore Harvard's $2 billion in research grants