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Shutdown Deadline Looms Over COVID-19 Relief Talks

Associated Press

   With a key issue proving difficult to resolve, a midnight government
   shutdown loomedFriday, though congressional negotiators seemed
   tantalizingly close to agreement on an almost $1 trillion COVID-19
   economic relief package. An air of exhausted frustration infused the
   Capitol.

   Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said early in the
   day he was "even more optimistic now than I was last night," but
   Democrats launched a concerted campaign to block an effort by
   Republicans to rein in emergency Federal Reserve lending powers. They
   said the GOP proposal would deprive President-elect Joe Biden of
   crucial tools to manage the economy.

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