Even after 'productive' meeting, deal on new round of stimulus not 'imminent'

Politicians and executive officials in Capitol Hill on Saturday said that the latest round of stimulus talks have gone well even though both sides are still a ways off from approving a fresh round of coronavirus relief checks for the country. 

A three-hour conference between Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows, and Secretary of the Treasury Steve Mnuchin "was the longest meeting we had and it was more productive than the other meetings," Schumer said on Saturday morning. 

"We're not close yet, but it was a productive discussion," he added. "Now each side knows where they're at."

Meadows echoed those remarks, claiming both sides are "still a long ways apart."

"... I don't want to suggest that a deal is imminent because it is not," Meadows told reporters. "There are still substantial differences, but we did make good progress."

On the table is another stimulus of $1,200 for most Americans; in the latest round, children will also receive—via their parents—a $1,200 check, up from $600 during the last stimulus. 

Once seemingly in doubt, an extension of a $600 weekly federal unemployment check also now seems more likely, with President Trump on Friday tweeting his support of the measure while criticizing Schumer for reportedly blocking it.