More stimulus for New Jersey business? There’s talk — and tweets — but no deal yet

By
Robert F. Russo
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Is help for New Jersey businesses from the federal government coming soon?

Maybe.

There are no certainties in politics, but there is more interest in finding common ground on another stimulus package than there has been in months. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi appeared to indicate that on Face The Nation Sunday morning.

“We’re making progress,” she said.

Pelosi said Democrats are holding out for more than just the stimulus that the Republicans and President Donald Trump want.

“We want to see that they will agree on what we need to do to crush the virus so that we can open the economy and open our schools safely,” she said.

Trump, who is currently hospitalized with the virus, implored the Legislature to get another round of stimulus done.

“Our great USA wants & needs stimulus,” he tweeted from the Walter Reed military hospital in Bethesda, Maryland, on Saturday. “Work together and get it done. Thank you!”

The size — and scope — of the package is the holdup. Pelosi has said making sure there is money for a national testing and contact tracing strategy is a top concern.

“It just depends on if they understand what we have to do to crush the virus,” Pelosi said of the Republicans. “You can’t say we need to do something but you’re going to let the virus run free.”

Another stimulus package would be of special interest to one of the state’s largest employers, United Airlines.

The airline industry threatened massive layoffs on Oct. 1 if another package was not passed. Pelosi, on Friday, implored airline executives to wait.

“I’ve said to the airline executives in a public statement: Don’t fire people, you know that relief is on the way and it will be retroactive, so let’s keep them employed,” Pelosi said.

The airline industry is in an especially precarious position. Because of the regulations and certifications that go with being hired in the industry — mainly for safety and security reasons — it’s not as easy to hire back employees as it is in other industries.