NEW: Pres. Joe Biden on passage of the American Rescue Plan: "When we took office 45 days ago, I promised the American people help was on the way. Today, I can say we've taken one more giant step forward in delivering on that promise." https://t.co/TvqziFwAXcpic.twitter.com/AFkvfyn7OO
Following remarks in the State Dining Room, President Joe Biden tells reporters none of the compromises reached in passing the administration's Covid-relief bill through the Senate "have in any way fundamentally altered the essence of what I put in the bill in the first place." pic.twitter.com/TPjkvFj68c
An exhausted Senate narrowly approved a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill as President Biden and his Democratic allies notched a victory they called crucial for hoisting the country out of the pandemic and economic doldrums. The vote was 50-49. https://t.co/nObp8UxGZD
The revised bill now goes to the House for consideration.
Here are the big provisions:
- $1,400 direct checks
- extended UI benefits at $300/week through Sept. 6
- $350 billion for cities, states, and tribes
- $170 billion for schools
- $100 billion for public health
heckuva quote, every Manchin basher should know about it:
A quote from late January that captures why Dems held together for the COVID bill. Joe Manchin is invested in this goal in a way that no Republican is. https://t.co/F87RetTaTjpic.twitter.com/ZJzIhyBLmH
He's Democrats' most valuable senator. Almost no way another Democrat holds that seat. He defects from the party fairly often but rarely when his vote would be decisive on major issues. https://t.co/W1sw9H53TC
Biden: "I really want to thank the American people for making all this possible. How do they make it possible? Quite frankly, without the overwhelming bipartisan support of the American people, this would not have happened." pic.twitter.com/bv4UZxutZe
When thinking about ways this got shaved down, it’s worth remembering that when Biden first rolled out the $1.9 trillion request almost everyone assumed he’d need to settle for hundreds of billions less than that not just shave off some edges.
OOPS: After Republican senators drew out the negotiations for the COVID bill into an all nighter, they dumbasses staggered off to sleep. Chuck Schumer briefly had a 2/3rds majority and was able to get cloture on Merrick Garland. Vote scheduled next week
While Trump was president, EVERY Democrat voted for the $2 trillion CARES Act, even though doing so helped Trump.
While Biden is president, ZERO Republicans voted for the $1.9 trillion American Relief Plan, because hurting Biden is more important than helping Americans.
— Brian Tyler Cohen (@briantylercohen) March 6, 2021
My understanding is that most working class Americans amass fortunes in the $11-23 million range and have been clamoring for this kind of assistance. https://t.co/our0C5EloT
Is actually like tri-partisanship, across the board, and the way it's supposed to be with the presidential role, representing the majority of voters across the nation, forget all that gerrymandering in the House and the way the Senate is rigged in favor of less populous states. The only segment not satisfied seems to be the fiscal conservatives:
President Biden has managed to circumvent Republican politicians and sign into law policies that are popular with Republican voters as well as Democrats. It's a true achievement and a true bipartisan one, with or without Republican politicians. Sh'koiach, Mr. President. https://t.co/XD0XvyHWrd
and a reminder that even Trump fans were pro-stimulus in many ways. Of course a lot of Bernie Bros types are still highly dissatisfied, but their leader is leaving them behind, very proud of being part of the bill.
[....] Just how much is $1.9 trillion on a global scale?
It’s big. To put it in context, Biden’s American Rescue Plan alone is larger than most countries’ annual economic output, running slightly behind Italy and ahead of Brazil according to 2019 data from the World Bank.
And it is only the latest U.S. measure. In December, Congress passed a $900 billion relief bill, on top of more than $2.5 trillion of aid authorized during President Donald Trump’s final full year in office.
The United States appears to have spent more than anywhere else on coronavirus relief. The U.S. economy is the largest in the world, so the country has more to spend.
Japan, which approved a $707 billion stimulus in December on top of two previous packages that amounted to $2.2 trillion, probably comes in second. However, some analysts take issue with Japan’s figures, saying they include more than just government coronavirus spending.
Comparisons can be tricky: In some countries, generous social safety nets that were already in place have kicked into gear during the pandemic, easing the need for massive spending pushes.
How does U.S. spending compare?
Ceyhun Elgin, a macroeconomist at Boğaziçi University in Turkey who has been leading a team tracking countries’ fiscal responses to the pandemic as share of gross domestic product, said that before Biden’s relief package the United States had committed to around 18.22 percent of its GDP — the 13th largest share among 168 countries being tracked [....]
Bennet (D-Colo.) is the unsung hero of child tax credit/ allowance victory. Has been working to build support among Senate Dems for years. In 2019, co-sponsored a version with the first Republican lawmaker to endorse a fully-refundable CTC (Romney). Got Biden-Harris on board. https://t.co/pJlxwWDXlB
Part of Biden's speech tonight was an effort to make the case that people should have confidence in government — a sentiment that would offer his administration some reward if it catches on. https://t.co/7PLUowvDse
One of the under-recognized flips last year was in Fox polling: the percentage of Americans wishing that the government would offer them help increased dramatically. That includes among Republicans. https://t.co/7PLUowvDsepic.twitter.com/iYc5vqQoTp
the absurdity of the "fuck Joe Biden" socialist activists in places like Nevada and Portland really hits when you see an essay like this:
"Biden’s radicalism is not without reason. Or purpose. We desperately need a correction. A shift to the left in 2021 is completely defensible. But a shift this strong? On everything?"https://t.co/8vb8FHY80Q
Comments
by artappraiser on Sat, 03/06/2021 - 5:48pm
heckuva quote, every Manchin basher should know about it:
by artappraiser on Sat, 03/06/2021 - 6:47pm
Nate Silver on Manchin:
by artappraiser on Sat, 03/06/2021 - 6:57pm
as broadcast on Fox News:
by artappraiser on Sat, 03/06/2021 - 7:44pm
by artappraiser on Sun, 03/07/2021 - 1:30am
by artappraiser on Sat, 03/06/2021 - 8:12pm
Pretty daming criticism of the NYTimes especially since he's usually pretty lax about political clickbait:
by artappraiser on Sat, 03/06/2021 - 8:17pm
by artappraiser on Sun, 03/07/2021 - 1:27am
by PeraclesPlease on Sun, 03/07/2021 - 11:33am
It will be good to get the check once it is distributed.
by Orion on Mon, 03/08/2021 - 7:34am
by PeraclesPlease on Mon, 03/08/2021 - 10:29am
by artappraiser on Mon, 03/08/2021 - 5:35pm
wow, this is a major thing:
by artappraiser on Tue, 03/09/2021 - 3:14am
by artappraiser on Wed, 03/10/2021 - 1:28pm
by artappraiser on Wed, 03/10/2021 - 1:48pm
Is actually like tri-partisanship, across the board, and the way it's supposed to be with the presidential role, representing the majority of voters across the nation, forget all that gerrymandering in the House and the way the Senate is rigged in favor of less populous states. The only segment not satisfied seems to be the fiscal conservatives:
and a reminder that even Trump fans were pro-stimulus in many ways. Of course a lot of Bernie Bros types are still highly dissatisfied, but their leader is leaving them behind, very proud of being part of the bill.
by artappraiser on Thu, 03/11/2021 - 3:06pm
How the $1.9 trillion U.S. stimulus package compares with other countries’ coronavirus spending
by Adam Taylor @ WashingtonPost.com, March 10
by artappraiser on Wed, 03/10/2021 - 5:06pm
(found retweeted by housing expert Diane Yentl)
by artappraiser on Wed, 03/10/2021 - 5:13pm
$28.6 billion in direct restaurant aid:
by artappraiser on Wed, 03/10/2021 - 5:23pm
by artappraiser on Thu, 03/11/2021 - 2:32am
Jim Clyburn funning:
by artappraiser on Thu, 03/11/2021 - 3:27pm
by artappraiser on Thu, 03/11/2021 - 7:37pm
also see thread
by artappraiser on Thu, 03/11/2021 - 8:02pm
by artappraiser on Thu, 03/11/2021 - 10:12pm
the absurdity of the "fuck Joe Biden" socialist activists in places like Nevada and Portland really hits when you see an essay like this:
by artappraiser on Fri, 03/12/2021 - 3:19pm