Second Stimulus Showdown Looms

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi outlined the details of a potential second economic stimulus package on Thursday, setting the stage for another economic showdown with the White House this fall.

Speaking to reporters at her weekly press conference, Pelosi said she hoped the roughly $50billion package will include a major investment in infrastructure spending, home heating assistance, aid to states to help with Medicare costs and increasing food stamp benefits.

Pelosi aides said the measure would likely hit the House floor in early September.

Pelosi’s remarks came as the Labor Department announced Thursday that 406,000 people applied for new unemployment benefits last week, an increase of almost 100,000 from the same time period a year ago.

“Today the news…makes clear that we must take action to help Americans make ends meet in these difficult economic times,” said Pelosi.

“It is yet another indication that we need another economic stimulus package.”

When asked if the cost of the package would be around $50million, Pelosi said: “I would hope that it would not be less than that.”

However, she acknowledged that passage of the measure would: “depend on the recognition by the president of the United States that the American people are having a hard time.”
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