House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy criticized Democrats for holding up new economic relief with funding and policy demands that include mail-in ballots for the November general election.

“Hopefully, they realize this is disgusting what they are doing,” McCarthy, a California Republican, told reporters Thursday.

An hour earlier, Senate Democrats blocked a $251 billion small-business funding package introduced by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a Kentucky Republican.

Democrats sought to double the funding in order to bolster not just small businesses but also hospitals and state and local coffers. They blocked a move by McConnell, a Kentucky Republican, to pass the $251 billion by unanimous consent. Democrats introduced their own package, which also greatly expanding the scope of the measure and included changes to the small-business program to help underserved small businesses gain access.

[Also read: Key House Republican opposes rush for fourth coronavirus rescue package]

McCarthy said the hospital, state, and local funding demands are unreasonable because those funds have not yet run dry, while the small business program is on pace to run out of money very soon. McCarthy opposed the policy changes to the small-business program proposed by Democrats but said the two parties can discuss changes if problems arise distributing the funds.

“I don’t understand how any of that could become political,” McCarthy said, accusing Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, both Democrats, of “playing politics with a pandemic.”

McCarthy criticized plans by Democrats to draft another coronavirus relief package that includes a requirement that the federal government establish mail-in balloting for the November election. Democrats believe the mail-in ballots should be sent out due to the coronavirus outbreak and the threat of unsafe crowding at the polls.

Republicans said mail-in balloting can lead to election fraud and that it has no place in a coronavirus relief package.

“That’s disgusting to me right now,” McCarthy said. “Stop worrying about politics. Start worrying about what’s in front of us right now, and that’s the health of the nation, combating this virus, and our economy.”

Pelosi, in a later press conference with reporters, defended efforts to implement mail-in voting, suggesting Republicans want to lower participation in elections. Democrats want to include a provision that would enable voting by mail in the next major economic relief bill, she said.

“We have a different value system for what voting means to a democracy,” Pelosi told reporters.

“Clearly we want to remove all obstacles to voting…especially in a pandemic.”

Pelosi said Republicans should "have more confidence," in their party instead of fearing mail-in balloting will hurt their election chance.

Pelosi said going to the polls is a health risk.

"Why should we say to people stand in line for hours when we don't even want you leaving the house?" Pelosi said.