White House 'Hopeful' on Aid Talks; Senate Votes Down McConnell Proposal

White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows is “very hopeful and very optimistic that we’re making progress” in talks on a compromise COVID-19 aid bill despite the Senate failing to invoke cloture on Republicans’ Delivering Immediate Relief to America’s Families, Schools and Small Businesses Act. It has Department of Education funding partly for remote learning (see 2009080076). Senators voted 51-44 on moving forward with debate on the measure, which Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., offered as a substitute amendment to S-178, the designated shell bill for the next COVID-19 measure. That fell short of the 60-vote threshold to invoke cloture on legislation. Democrats are pushing for passage of the revised version of the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (Heroes) Act (HR-8406), which includes more than $15 billion in broadband funding (see 2009290044). Meadows told reporters he remains hopeful a deal can happen, but Senate Republicans “are starting to get to a point where they believe that” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., “is not negotiating in a fair and equitable manner.” Pelosi noted on SiriusXM she wants “a deal” before the Nov. 3 election, and it’s “going to be up to whether” President Donald Trump “can convince [McConnell] to do so.” House Commerce Committee ranking member Greg Walden, R-Ore., urged Democrats to “put partisan politics aside.”