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U.S. President Joe Biden visits the White House South Lawn on January 29, 2021 in Washington, D.C.
A group of 10 Republican senators plans to present President Joe Biden with a compromise proposal for the next round of fighting the coronavirus, including a third round of stimulus measures. They propose a VID-19 package of $600 billion instead of Biden’s $1.9 trillion plan. A group of GOP senators, led by Senator Susan Collins of Maine, announced in a letter dated January 31, 2021, that they will present their proposal on Monday, January 1. February. Collins and others plan to appeal to Biden’s campaign for a bipartisan agreement.
In a letter, the senators wrote: As you proclaimed in your inaugural address, meeting the challenges facing our nation requires the most difficult thing in a democracy: Unit. In response to this important call, we look forward to working with you on a bipartisan basis in the fight against the COVID-19 virus and providing continued support to families fighting the pandemic.
The letter was signed by Collins, Lisa Murkowski, senator from Alaska, Bill Cassidy, senator from Louisiana, Mitt Romney, senator from Utah, Rob Portman, senator from Ohio, Shelley Moore Capito, senator from West Virginia, Todd Young, senator from Indiana, Jerry Moran, senator from Kansas, Mike Rounds, senator from South Dakota, and Tom Tillis, senator from North Carolina.
Biden responded to the letter Sunday night, saying in a statement from spokeswoman Jen Psaki that he has spoken with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and that he believes Congress intends to follow through on his plan. Psaki said Biden had invited Collins and nine other GOP senators to the White House for an in-depth exchange.
Psaki said: With the virus posing a serious threat to the country and the environmental conditions for many being wretched, there is an urgent need for action and large-scale action. There is an urgent need for a U.S. stimulus package that includes 1,400 aid vouchers, significant investments to combat COWID and reopen schools, assistance for small businesses and affected families, and resources to provide emergency services (and more). As leading economists have said, the danger lies not in doing too much, but in doing too little. Americans of both parties look to their leaders to seize the opportunity.
Mr. Schumer said in a speech on the 28th. In January, Democrats said they would push for a new COWID-19 stimulus package and that members of Congress were not interested in passing a more modest proposal.
We prefer to make this important work a bipartisan effort – incorporating the contributions, ideas and amendments of our Republican colleagues or a bipartisan effort to do the same, Schumer said in his speech. But if our Republican colleagues choose to oppose this urgent and necessary legislation, we will have to move on without it. Schumer added that Democrats want a bill that is important, incisive and strong, saying they have learned lessons from the 2009 financial crisis, when Congress was too reluctant to pass needed legislation. He said Democrats don’t want to repeat mistakes.
The Biden administration hopes to receive $1,400 in direct payments soon. This amount would have been combined with the $600 billion in stimulus checks paid out as part of the $900 billion COVID-19 bill that former President Donald Trump signed into law in late December 2020. On Friday, January 30, Biden said in a speech: Past crises have taught us that the risk is not too great. Risk is not enough. When Biden announced his $1.9 trillion bailout plan on the 14th. of January, he said: We will end up with a total of $2,000 in cash for those who need it most. The $600 already allocated is just not enough.
10 GOP senators call for more targeted support through direct payments of $1,000.
GettyRepublican Senator Susan Collins, Maine, in January 2021.
In a letter to Biden, 10 GOP senators wrote: In a spirit of bipartisanship and unity, we have developed the COVID 19 aid framework, which builds on the previous COVID aid legislation, adopted with the support of both parties. Our proposal reflects many of the priorities you have identified and we believe that, with your support, this plan can be passed quickly by Congress with bipartisan support. We request to meet with you to discuss our proposal in detail and how we can work together to meet the needs of the American people during this ongoing pandemic.
The letter refers to direct incentives: Our proposal includes economic assistance for the Americans who need it most and provides more targeted assistance than the Administration’s plan. We offer a complementary set of economic impact payments to the neediest families, including their children and dependent adults.
Republican senators have not specified what their plan entails in the stimulus bill. Mr. Biden’s proposal calls for $1,400 in direct payments. But in an interview with Fox News on Sunday, Senator Kolkhoze said: We are very pleased to see that the government has taken steps to improve the situation. Bill Cassidy said the plan would include $1,000 in direct payments. The amount varies according to income. Cassidy did not specify income limits. Incentive checks of $600 were sent to those who earn $75,000 or less individually or $150,000 or less as a couple in 2019, with an additional $600 for each child in the family. Reduced checks were also sent to those who earned between $75,001 and $87,000 in 2019.
We’re very focused, we’re focused on the needs of the American people, Cassidy told Fox News on Sunday. Treat our tax money as our money, not just money to spend, and put it where we need it to get us out of the pandemic. As for direct payments, Cassidy said: Our goal is $1,000, and we’re short. As you have noticed, there is a very good analysis that above a certain income level, that money is not spent. She can now pay off her debts, and we’ve seen credit cards go unpaid, mortgages go unpaid, savings rates go up. But that doesn’t stimulate the economy. That’s good, but it doesn’t stimulate the economy. Our money is flowing at a level that we know will stimulate the economy and that is, in theory, what they really want.
GOP senators propose $600 billion compromise plan to combat coronavirus Bill Cassidy, R-La. tells Fox News Sunday that the proposed measure meets the needs of the American people. Subscribe to Fox News! https://bit.ly/2vBUvAS Watch more Fox News videos: http://video.foxnews.com Watch Fox News Channel live: http://www.foxnewsgo.com/ FOX News Channel (FNC) is a 24-hour news service providing breaking news, political information and …2021-01-31T20:54:37Z.
According to Nexstar Media Group, the Biden administration has said it is open to negotiating which Americans will receive the check, and that the stimulus bill may be targeted more directly at low-income people.
The letter was added: Our plan also includes extending federal unemployment benefits at current levels and fully funding your application for food assistance for families in need. We share your goal of providing additional assistance to our small businesses. Our plan includes additional resources to help our small businesses and their employees through a wage protection program and an economic hardship loan program.
The senators wrote: In 2020, members of the House and Senate and the previous administration met five times on a bipartisan basis to appropriate federal funds for the urgent response to the COWID-19 pandemic. Each of these laws was supported by members of both political parties. We believe that, with your support, Congress can once again develop an aid program that provides meaningful and effective assistance to the American people and puts us on the road to recovery. We acknowledge your calls for unity and look forward to working in good faith with your government to address the challenges of COWID’s health, economic and social crisis.
Biden’s economic adviser, Brian Deese, has said that the White House is adamant about the speed with which we must act to address this crisis.
Brian Deese, director of the National Economic Council, told CNN’s Dana Bash that they are open to ideas for economic assistance in the aftermath of the coronavirus pandemic. #CNN #News2021-01-31T15:46:14Z
Biden’s economic adviser, Brian Deese, responded Sunday on CNN to a letter from Republican senators: We have received the letter and we will certainly look into it. …What I’m saying is that the provisions of the President’s plan, the U.S. bailout plan, are tailored to the economic crises that we’re facing. He said the plan was made to answer: How are we going to directly help the families and businesses that are suffering the most?
The administration is certainly open to any intervention from wherever we can find a constructive idea to make this package as effective as possible, said Mr. Deez, director of the National Economic Center. But the president is adamant about the speed with which we must act to address this crisis.
Asked about targeted stimulus tests, Deese said: We want to put money in the pockets of families and businesses that need it most. That is why we have unemployment insurance for people who lose their jobs through no fault of their own, that is why we have aid to provide food and combat hunger, aid to ensure that families are not evicted from their homes and end up on the street, and 1 400 cheques.
Deese continues: We are ready to consider how the whole scheme can be designed effectively to achieve its purpose, including providing support for families with children, granting direct child tax credits to families with children most affected by the crisis. It’s certainly a place where we’re willing to sit down and think about how to make the whole package more effective.
Mr. Disa added: When we think of targeting, we think that this plan is really about putting money in the pockets of those who need it most.
With the support of 10 GOP senators, the bill could have gone through normal Senate procedures instead of using budget mediation
GettySenate leaders Mitch McConnell, left, and Chuck Schumer.
According to the Washington Post, a compromise proposal by 10 Republican senators would allow the package to go through normal Senate procedures rather than the budget reconciliation process. The Senate is split 50-50. The Democrats will have enough votes to approve the package via budget reconciliation, but at least 10 GOP votes are needed for the process to proceed normally.
Written post: The Democrats plan to circumvent the 60-vote requirement by using special budget rules that would allow Mr. Biden’s package to pass with a simple majority. The Democrats control the Senate because Vice President Harris can be a deciding vote. Democratic advisers said the GOP proposal would not change their plans to take up the funding bill this week, paving the way for the party’s approval of Biden’s plan.
Jared Bernstein, Biden’s other economic adviser, told Fox News on Sunday that they are willing to negotiate, but that the cost of inaction is extremely high…. I am pleased to learn from this letter that they are on board, but we have yet to learn much about them. We are now in a position where delay and passivity are the enemy of progress. … The American people really don’t care about the budget process, whether it’s the usual bipartisan order, or filibustering, or reconciliation, they need help, and they need it now.
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