In his prime time address on Tuesday and mid-afternoon remarks to the American People on Monday (March 15, 2021) afternoon, President Biden informed the populace that two milestones should be reached in the next ten days with one hundred million Americans receiving:
- at least their first COVID 19 vaccinations.
- their $1400 cash payments from the American Rescue Plan.
Saying "the American Rescue Plan is already doing what it was designed to do-make a difference in people's everyday lives," President Biden also reminded the people that the average American family with two children making $110,000 a year will see an extra $5600.
Mr. Biden also relayed the other features of the American Rescue Plan which include:
- Expanded unemployment insurance.
- Assistance to small businesses.
- "Resources for schools to reopen safely."
- Investments in child care.
- Combatting food insecurity.
- Mortgage and Rental assistance.
- Expanded health care coverage and lower costs.
- Cut child poverty in half.
- Generate economic growth for all sectors.
- A focus on rebuilding/helping the working and middle classes.
The President, citing his prior experience of supervising the funding distribution of the American Recovery Act and the Trump Administration's mismanagement of CARES Act small business funding, also announced that he was appointing former Clinton and Obama National Economic Policy Council Chairperson Gene Sperling to oversee the implementation of the American Rescue Plan funds to "make sure the relief arrives quickly, equitably, and efficiently with no waste or fraud."
Mr. Biden closed his remarks saying:
"Help is here and hope is here in real and tangible ways...That's great progress. There's a lot more to do. We have to prove to the American People that their government can deliver for them and do it without waste or fraud. That we can vaccinate our nation. That we can get our kids safely back in schools. That we can get our economy back on track and help hundreds of thousands of small businesses stay open and that we can give millions of people in this nation a fighting chance again."
At the end of his presentation, Mr. Biden said Trump supporters leery of getting vaccines should consult with their personal doctors or ministers to ask their advice about receiving the medication.
It is apparent from both the Thursday and Monday speeches that the philosophical goal of the Biden/Harris Administration is to overturn the governing paradigm of the last 40 years dating back to the Reagan Administration that glorified trickle down economics and professed "government was the problem."
President Biden and his team are endeavoring to restore trust and faith in government. They want to demonstrate that government could be a force for good and serve the people well.
If they are able to successfully implement American Rescue Plan, pass a major infrastructure bill, secure voting rights, reform the immigration system, strengthen the Affordable Care Act, lift people out of poverty, and grow the Middle Class, they may just accomplish that and finally consign trickle-down economics to the dustbin of history where it belongs.
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