With only a few weeks to go before the end of the year and seats in both the upper and lower houses of Congress split, the chances of a second round of stimulus being passed by the lame-duck session of Congress are rapidly diminishing

Before the elections, lawmakers had indicated that negotiations would continue in earnest once the votes were counted, and some continued to express that hope after November 3 However, top negotiators on both sides are now showing no signs of conceding on their priorities, and the House and Senate are scheduled to adjourn on December 10 and December 18, respectively

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) has been pushing for a nearly $2 trillion agreement that includes a second $1,200 stimulus package

The Trump administration was close to an agreement with Pelosi after months of negotiations, but questions remained about support for state and local governments and liability protection for businesses

Meanwhile, despite the Senate's failure to offer its own two scaled-down "skinny" stimulus bills, lawmakers continue to push for significant spending cuts if they will take up any proposals [According to USA Today, "I don't think the status quo calls for a multi-trillion dollar package, so I think it should be very targeted," Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) said Tuesday

According to the Associated Press, the White House appeared unwilling to continue negotiations on behalf of Republicans, previously represented by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, and passed the baton to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) [Senator Roy Blunt (R-Missouri) told the Associated Press, "I don't mean to be disrespectful to Secretary Mnuchin, but I think it's better for members of Congress to negotiate with members of Congress I'm pleased that [McConnell] has made the decision to step up and negotiate and try to put a bill on the president's desk that he can sign"

With limited time left in 2020 and the more pressing need to pass a funding bill by December 11 to avoid a lame duck session, President Trump's refusal to concede, and a government shutdown, it is It seems unlikely that they will agree on priorities for the stimulus package anytime soon

As Senator John Kennedy (R-Louisiana) said earlier this week about voting for a bill that reflects Democratic priorities, "I don't think most Republicans will"

This is despite the fact that many economists and business leaders are saying that a massive stimulus bill is needed to get the country moving forward economically again

"Our country must rally around the common cause of recovery In this regard, there can be no division," said the president of the generally Republican-leaning US Chamber of Commerce, according to ALcom 'The first order of business must be pandemic relief America's small businesses cannot afford to wait another three months for Congress to act

It is also not clear exactly how the Biden administration will pursue its stimulus plan Early transition plans indicate that the president-elect will push for priorities that House Democrats have included in past spending bills, such as support for state and local governments and additional unemployment benefits

Even if Biden pushes through most or all of Pelosi's requests, he would still have to pass the likely Republican-led Senate, which would be tied if Democrats win both Senate seats from Georgia in a runoff election in early January

The tiebreaker would be the vice presidency, Mike Pence until Biden takes office, then Kamala Harris; after January 20, Biden could be more liberal

However, it is more likely that the Republicans will retain one or two seats in Georgia and McConnell will remain majority leader In that case, Biden would have to leverage the personal relationship with McConnell that Biden established during his tenure in the Senate and as vice president

"This will be the first test for Biden," a Republican strategist told USA Today an opportunity to show if he can come out of the gate and govern in a more aggressive and bipartisan way than he has for the past four years"