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Source: PA Images
US PRESIDENT JOE Biden has made his case to act fast and without Republicans, if necessary, to pass his $ 1.9 trillion coronavirus aid package.
The stakes for the country and the economy widened this morning with the release of the government employment report for January, which showed hiring had stalled at a pace that could hamper a return to full employment for several years.
Some 406,000 people left the workforce last month as deaths from the pandemic mounted.
“A lot of people are losing hope,” Biden said in a speech at the White House.
“I think the American people are looking for their government’s help right now, to do our job, not to let them down. Then I will act. I will act fast. I would like to do it with the support of the Republicans … they are simply not willing to go as far as I think we have to go. “
The jobs report came shortly after Senate Democrats cast a swing vote to push the Covid relief plan through the House without Republican support, a step toward final approval next month.
Vice President Kamala Harris cast the Senate tiebreaker vote, the first.
Biden’s speech solidified a marked shift in tone and strategy for a president who entered the White House promising bipartisanship and met with 10 Republican senators on Monday pushing for a reduced $ 618 billion alternative.
Biden concluded in his speech today that aid at that level would only prolong the financial pain.
Senate Democrats cheered after Harris announced the 51-50 House vote on the budget measure around 5:30 a.m.
The action came after a grueling session that lasted all night, in which senators voted on amendments that could define the contours of the eventual Covid-19 aid bill.
After the approval of the Senate, the House approved measure 219-209 this afternoon, also without a Republican vote.
The coronavirus relief package can now work its way through Congressional committees with the goal of finalizing additional relief in mid-March, when additional unemployment assistance and other pandemic relief expire.
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It’s an aggressive schedule that will test the ability of the new administration and Congress to deliver.
“We have focused like a laser on getting this done,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said after leading House Democrats met with Biden today.
“We hope we can put vaccines in people’s arms, money in people’s pockets, children in schools safely, and workers at their jobs. That is what we are doing now. “
The stimulus push comes amid new signs of weakening in the US economy. Employers added just 49,000 jobs in January, after cutting 227,000 jobs in December, the Labor Department said today.
Restaurants, retailers, manufacturers and even the healthcare sector laid off workers last month, meaning private employers accounted for a meager 6,000 job gain last month.
“At that rate, it will take 10 years for us to achieve full employment,” Biden said during his Oval Office meeting with House Democrats. “That is not hyperbole. It is a fact.”
The unemployment rate fell to 6.3% from 6.7%, but there was a decrease in the number of people who were working or looking for work, a sign that people are leaving the workforce. The US economy is 9.9 million jobs below its pre-pandemic level.
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