Senate Republicans failed to move forward with their near-symbolic "skinny" stimulus package of $500 billion last week, but some Republicans voted 52-47 in favor, putting pressure on Democrats to negotiate to provide more relief and bring stimulus check 2 They hope to bring it closer to reality

The Hill reports that Republicans want House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-NY) in the hot seat to protect Democrats who are vulnerable in the upcoming election and may need to pass a new coronavirus relief bill to retain their seats

Some Democrats are, in fact, so restless that a group of lawmakers signed a letter last month urging Pelosi to move forward with negotiations

Pelosi has said she is still confident that an agreement can be reached

"I'm totally optimistic," Pelosi told CNN's Wolf Blitzer on Friday (September 11) 'I am optimistic I am optimistic I think we should come to a consensus

House Democrats passed a $34 trillion HEROES bill in May, but Republicans had difficulty spending that much on a second bailout and countered with a $11 trillion HEALS bill in July

One sticking point is the size and duration of federal unemployment benefits Democrats want to keep unemployment benefits at $600 per week, while the Republican HEALS Act wants to reduce them to $200 per week

Negotiations between Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin have brought them closer together Democrats lowered the cost of the bill to $22 trillion, while the White House said it might raise its proposal to $15 trillion

Meanwhile, the official Senate Republican "skinny" bill and another "skinny" bill proposed by some House Democrats sought to focus on the non-stimulus check aspect of coronavirus relief

Unfortunately, Stimulus 2 may have gotten lost in the fray While the factions initially agreed on the need for a second direct payment and reached consensus on the amount and options for expanding dependent care benefits, none of the recent "skinny" proposals included a check for $1,200

Democrats countered that their firm position would draw Republicans back to the talks

"Every time Senate Majority Leader McConnell said, 'We can't do anything unless it's our bill,' they came back and we actually accomplished something bipartisan," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) told The Hill

Most eligible Americans have already received the payments provided by the CARES Act, but there could be as many as 9 million who still owe up to $1,200 The IRS plans to notify individuals later this month, and those who are eligible must provide their information using the non-filer tool by October 15

If you have not yet received your first check but believe you are eligible, you can use the IRS Get My Payment app to check your status