Senate Adds Tuesday Session In Effort To Pass Coronavirus Aid

WASHINGTON, D.C. — While many Senators and members of the Trump administration indicated they were hopeful this weekend that an agreement would be reached on Monday for an additional new coronavirus relief bill, negotiations continue to drag on in the Senate.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has now amended the Senate schedule to insert a meeting on Tuesday, despite the chamber initially expected to meet only on Monday and Thursday.

"Since this is so urgent, I have asked that the Senate meet again tomorrow in a new session that was not previously scheduled, and the Democratic leader has agreed to my request," McConnell said on the Senate floor Monday. "Colleagues, it is past time, past time, to get this done for the country."

The new relief deal would add close to $300 billion to the Paycheck Protection Program for small-businesses that ran out of funding three weeks after Congress passed it as part of a $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus package.

The soon expected stimulus package also reportedly includes $50 billion for the Economic Injury Disaster Loan, $75 billion for hospitals and $25 billion for testing.

You can read more about the conversations surrounding the new relief deal in the Senate on The Hill.