As Politico’s Playbook puts it, thanks to Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia’s support, President Joe Biden will soon “sign into law the greatest expansion of the welfare state since LBJ,” auguring what the Washington Post calls “seismic shifts in U.S. politics.” The COVID-19 American Rescue Plan is a progressive triumph which is scarcely blemished by Manchin’s insistence that it be slightly less generous in its stimulus payments and not include a $15/hour minimum wage. To begin with, Biden claims it will cut childhood poverty in half. Imagine if that is even close to true.
In New York magazine, Ed Kilgore explains why there’s reason to hope that Biden is correct. Under the provisions of the bill, a “family of four” will receive a stimulus payment of “$5,600, and a two-parent family with three kids and a dependent adult would receive $8,400.” The Expanded Child Tax Credit will increased from $3,000 to $3,600.
Less direct and tangible — but vitally important to some parents — are provisions in the House-passed stimulus bill aimed at boosting the supply of child-care resources, improving access to affordable health care, and helping reopen schools. And some families, of course, will benefit from supplemental federal unemployment insurance, housing assistance, small-business loans, and other items in the overall package.
The bill is a major bailout of the child care industry, which has been hammered by the pandemic. With $15 billion for child care subsidies, the package also helps consumers, and it invests $450 million for domestic violence services. Struggling mothers will also find cheaper rates in the Obamacare marketplace, and a 15 percent increase in food stamp benefits. There’s $25 billion allocated for aid to renters at risk of eviction and utility assistance.
To get a sense of the size of this bill, consider that $1 billion is provided to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services just for increasing confidence in vaccination programs. There is massive aid to small businesses and $130 billion to help K-8 schools reopen. Whether you want to be a lab technician testing for COVID-19 antibodies or a HVAC contractor, there will be jobs galore created by the American Rescue Plan. Once the pandemic eases and people take their savings for cancelled summer camps and vacations, the pent-up demand will create another wave of jobs.
None of this would be happening without Joe Manchin, whose vote was essential for passing the bill in the Senate. He may even come around on the filibuster, at least to an extent.
