US Senate Adjourns Until September 8 Without Reaching COVID-19 Relief Deal

WASHINGTON (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 14th August, 2020) The US Senate has adjourned until September without reaching a deal on a novel coronavirus (COVID-19) relief package.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell kept the chamber in session this week, which is technically the beginning of August recess, in a last-ditch effort to negotiate a COVID-19 relief bill, The Hill reported on Thursday.

The US Senate will return on September 8 while the US House is expected back on September 14.

On Saturday, US President Donald Trump signed four executive actions on COVID-19 relief amid the lack of a compromise from Congress, which earlier this year passed $3 trillion worth of relief.� Trump's orders provide a payroll tax holiday to Americans earning less than $100,000 per year, grants $400 per week in unemployment benefits, loan relief and suspension of evictions.

Earlier on Thursday, White House Economic Adviser Larry Kudlow said there is no real need for another COVID-19 relief bill thanks to the orders signed by Trump to reopen school and protect workers.

Trump's Democratic rivals say his executive orders are unconstitutional and want a $600 payout restored that was in the previous relief package. The president, standing for reelection in November, is looking to revive the economy from a record decline of nearly 33 percent in the second quarter, brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.