The White House is stepping up pressure on congressional leaders to come to an agreement on a financial stimulus plan that meets the approval of the president. With many of the details of a compromise proposal worked out, the main item of contention at this point is the president's continued insistence on further mid-high income bracket tax cuts---which some Democrats seem ready to accept in return for increased aid for those dealing with job loss. Democrats have already won concessions from the Bush administration on increasing the duration of unemployment benefits, funding an expansion of these benefits to part-time workers, and creating a tax credit open to all unemployed workers that would cover half the cost of any health insurance plan.
See RICHARD W. STEVENSON, The New York Times, December 12, 2001