US coronavirus stimulus: Here's what Trump, Republicans, and Democrats say

Any plan the White House introduces will need to be approved by both houses of the U.S. Congress.

President Donald Trump met with fellow Republicans in the US Senate on Tuesday to discuss a fiscal stimulus plan to bolster the nation’s economy in the face of the coronavirus outbreak. Any plan the White House introduces will need to be approved by both houses of the US Congress. Expect Democrats, who control the House of Representatives, and Republicans, who control the Senate, to battle over the shape of the stimulus in the weeks to come.

Here are some of the ideas being put forward by the different groups.

The White House : Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin presented options for a stimulus package, but did not have a detailed plan. Trump has been focused on a payroll tax cut, advisers say, but has also publicly pledged relief for the airline, hotel, and cruise industries in recent days.

Employees and employers each pay 6.2% of a worker’s gross pay in payroll tax, which goes to fund Social Security and unemployment compensation, among other things. Donald Trump, who is up for re-election in November, told Republicans at the meeting that if a payroll tax cut is implemented, he would like it to last until after the election, or for it to become permanent.

Pence told the senators that the government insurers Medicare and Medicaid, as well as private insurers, have agreed to cover the cost of coronavirus tests, and the deductibles related to them. Mnuchin presented several options for deferred tax payments, Republicans said, including allowing companies and individuals to defer taxes interest free.