THE White House has said Nancy Pelosi is “standing in the way” of $1,200 stimulus checks and COVID relief.
On Wednesday, Donald Trump‘s Chief of Staff Mark Meadows claimed the House Speaker was purposefully delaying coronavirus payouts for “all Americans.”
Speaking to Fox News, Meadows said: “Nancy Pelosi continues to make sure that that she stands in the way of not just Republicans & mainstream Americans, but even a lot of her Democrat mbrs [sic] are asking her to come back to the table and negotiate in a meaningful way, which she’s not.
“It’s time that she gets serious about helping [people]. We invite her back to the table to hopefully help the American people.”
On Sunday, Meadows also claimed Pelosi rejected the GOP’s latest compromise of a $1.3 trillion package during NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
“We brought up the number. I had a conversation with Speaker Pelosi. And even on her $2.2 trillion counteroffer she can’t tell the American people nor me what is in that,” Meadows said.
“She puts forth a number, suggests that she came down, and yet she’s willing to turn down $1.3 trillion of help that goes to the American people because she would rather them have nothing than to give way on what her fantasy might be.”
“That would require Sen. Schumer, as you know, anything in the Senate requires both Democrats and Republicans.
“But Speaker Pelosi, if she worked with Chuck Schumer, I can tell you all of those things that I just mentioned are available for the American people, and Speaker Pelosi is saying no.”
Meadow’s comments come after Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said he’s willing to restart COVID-19 relief negotiations with Pelosi.
Although he was taken aback by her pricey $2.2 trillion package, Mnuchin told the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis he would be up to talk.
“Let me say I very much agree with you and those other experts that more fiscal response is needed,” Mnuchin said, reported The Hill.
“The president and I want to move forward with more fiscal response.”
“I’m prepared to sit down with the Speaker at any time to negotiate,” he said amid the stimulus stalemate.
Last week, Pelosi blamed the stalled negotiations on Donald Trump.
“More than 4 million have been added to the infection list because we paused,” Pelosi said of the process of testing and tracing in the United States.
“Over 80,000 more people have died, because they paused. … Trump fiddles while Rome burns, while America burns,” she added, during CNN’s “State of the Union.”
