
A bipartisan deal appeared imminent Sunday on a ballooning stimulus package aimed at pumping life into a national economy staggered by coronavirus-driven shutdowns and quarantines. The deal, now estimated at $1.4 trillion, includes $1,200 checks for most U.S. adults and hundreds of billions to assist businesses ground almost to a halt by the pandemic.
“We are poised to deliver the significant relief that Americans need with the speed that this crisis demands,” McConnell said.
The U.S., which confirmed more than 26,000 cases and 340 deaths, trailed Spain, Italy and China in reported infections. Confirmed cases, however, are a function of testing.
Worldwide cases of coronavirus surpassed 311,000, and there were more than 13,400 deaths as of Sunday, according to the Johns Hopkins University data dashboard.
The gloomy news was not enough to silence Chicagoans, however, who shared in a citywide “Livin’ on a Prayer” singalong Saturday night.
Jennifer Gorny Carlson and her 6-year-old daughter danced on their lawn.”We just came out of the house for the first time in two weeks to dance with friends – from a safe distance – so it truly was joyful,” Carlson said.