Senators have reached a tentative deal to pass an $827 billion economic stimulus bill.

They believe that there are enough votes to pass the bill with a final vote not expected before Monday, according to the Associated Press.

The American people want us to work together. They don't want to see us dividing along partisan lines on the most serious crisis confronting our country, said Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, AP reported

We do not want this recession we're in to march into a depression, said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Nevada Democrat, according to Reuters.

Sen. Ben Nelson of Nebraska told the Associated Press Friday that the package included $350 billion in tax cuts.

Pressure to pass the legislation grew on Friday after a government report indicated that the nation had lost 598,000 jobs in January as the unemployment rate rose to 7.6 percent. The country's economy has been in a recession since the end of 2007, losing 3.6 million jobs in total since then.

These numbers demand action, President Obama said soon after the numbers were released as he introduced an economic advisory board which would offer independent views on ways to help the economy improve.