Trump seeks stimulus package potentially worth more than $1 trillion, including direct payments to Americans

President Donald Trump said in Monday’s briefing that the U.S. may be able to get the new coronavirus outbreak under control by July or August at the earliest. Equities tanked as Trump delivered those remarks.

But major indexes rose during the coronavirus task force’s briefing Tuesday, as Trump and his officials signaled that the administration was mobilizing a major economic response that would go into effect soon.

“We’re going big,” Trump said at the presser. “We want to go big, go solid.”

“We don’t want airlines going out of business. We don’t people losing their jobs,” the president said.

More than 183,000 people have contracted the COVID-19 virus and at least 7,167 have died, according to Johns Hopkins University. In the U.S., more than 5,000 people have caught the coronavirus and at least 85 people have died, according to Johns Hopkins.

Other U.S. politicians have already suggested sending checks to Americans as part of an economic relief package. Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, on Monday floated a proposal to give $1,000 to every American to ease the pain caused by the virus.

Meanwhile, lawmakers on Capitol Hill are working to push through more emergency spending plans to respond to the virus. Trump signed an $8.3 billion funding package earlier in March, and a second bill is currently working its way through Congress.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s office said Monday that he will put forth a third proposal with at least $750 billion in spending to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

— CNBC’s Christina Wilkie contributed to this report.

Article source: https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/17/mnuchin-says-trump-administration-is-looking-to-get-cash-to-americans-immediately.html