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3/4 News Roundup and OT

The Progressive Wing Posted on March 4, 2021 by BennyMarch 4, 2021

Biden faces doubts over whether it’s still the right package

For policy experts and even members of Biden’s own party, the improving picture is raising questions about whether the stimulus bill is mismatched to the needs of the current moment.

Some economists say it’s too focused on providing funding to states, cities and schools — some of which, they argue, could be used instead for long-term economic investments or simply reduced altogether. Other critics question whether Democrats are squandering a unique opportunity to enact more lasting programs to reduce poverty, given how much in new funding they are approving as part of the legislation.

And some leading Democratic lawmakers have said the plan should include more safeguards to protect jobless Americans should the pandemic continue longer than expected — measures left out of the current package.

Biden promises enough coronavirus vaccine for ‘every adult in America’ by the end of May

“The improving economy and improving outlook on the virus has dramatically changed the dynamic on Biden’s spending plans, but the bill has remained largely the same,” said Bill Hoagland, a senior vice president at the Bipartisan Policy Center and former Republican staff director for the Senate Budget Committee.

The changed economic outlook has intensified political opposition to the bill, giving congressional Republicans political cover to vote against the legislation and creating some skittishness among centrist Democrats about the overall price tag.

On Wednesday, Biden agreed to a last-minute change pushed by moderate Democrats to tighten eligibility on the stimulus payments for higher-earning Americans, although liberal Democrats have called for expanding the payments. Centrist Democrats are expected to push other changes to further “target” the package, including redirecting state aid and reducing jobless benefits for Americans.

Biden limits eligibility for stimulus payments under pressure from moderate Senate Democrats

White House officials have pushed back on suggestions that its proposal is not as well-designed for March as it was January. They argue the country is still gripped by a deadly pandemic and economic crisis requiring vast resources, and are trying to push legislation through a slow-moving Congress amid rapidly changing circumstances.

“We’re still at the height of a pandemic,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Wednesday. “We are not going to recover from this pandemic tomorrow. The economic recession will not be recovered tomorrow.”

Biden has repeatedly argued that the risks of spending too little to help the economy outweigh the risks of spending too much. White House officials have also cited polling showing Biden’s relief plan is broadly popular with Americans, including a majority of Republican voters.

And even those who say the bill could be better targeted have acknowledged that Democrats’ urgency is being fueled by an impending deadline — March 14 — when tens of millions of Americans will begin to lose unemployment benefits if no action is taken.

“This is not a perfect bill. If an economist was designing it from scratch today, they would design it differently,” said Jason Furman, who served as a senior economist in the Obama administration. “But nothing Congress does is perfect, and as written the American Recovery Plan will be a major booster shot that will hopefully help close the remaining gaps in the economy.”

Several economists said they would cut down or overhaul several key parts of the bill.

The Congressional Budget Office has estimated the U.S. economy is running about $600 billion to $700 billion below potential because of the pandemic. This is the shortfall that many experts say the government should try to fill, but they point out that it’s a lot less than Biden’s proposal.

Constance Hunter, chief economist at KPMG, said the bill could be $1.5 trillion given the reality of the current economic upswing. The vast majority of business economists think injecting around $1 trillion more would be sufficient, according to a recent survey by the National Association for Business Economics.

Combined with legislation passed by Congress in December, Biden’s stimulus will amount to about $300 billion per month in new economic relief for its first nine months. By comparison, the decline in gross domestic product in November only amounted to $80 billion below precrisis levels, according to Furman.

Citing the improving economic outlook, House Republicans were united in voting against Biden’s bill last week. Virtually all Senate Republicans are expected to oppose the measure as well.

“It’s of a size that might have made sense a year ago … this is not a year ago,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Tuesday. “We’re making extraordinary progress with the rollout of the vaccines.”

Congressional Democrats and many economists have countered that the risks of spending too little dramatically outweigh the risks of spending too much.

Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) said the United States cannot risk re-creating the experience of the Obama administration, in which a modestly sized stimulus package led to only tepid growth and was accompanied by Democratic defeats at virtually all levels of government. That fear has helped hold the Democratic caucus together throughout passage of the bill, despite significant internal ideological divisions.

“We cannot go through the situation we did back in 2009 where the stimulus wasn’t strong enough and we stayed in recession for years,” Schumer said. “Just because the numbers are not as bad as they were doesn’t mean that we don’t need a continued strong push to get us out of this ditch and go upward and forward.”

Conservatives and other economists have criticized the bill’s allocation of $350 billion to states, cities, tribes and territories.

Moody’s Analytics found in a report that states and cities only need $61 billion. The American Enterprise Institute, a conservative think tank, pegs that number at closer to $100 billion, although the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities found as much as $225 billion was needed. Many states face much better fiscal outlooks than expected at the outset of the pandemic.

“If I were king for the day, I’d scale back a few hundred billion on state and local and use that money to help with the infrastructure program that’s coming,” said Mark Zandi, chief economist at Moody’s Analytics and the author of that report. “That’s a more effective way of using the resources to get back to full employment.”

The White House has pointed out that state and local governments have shed 1.3 million jobs and that its proposal has broad support from Republican and Democratic local officials across the country. More liberal economists also argue the federal government should try to boost states above pre-pandemic levels, arguing additional funding can help local growth.

“There’s no economic rationale for cutting the state and local aid down,” said Lindsay Owens, an economist at the Groundwork Collaborative, a left-leaning think tank. “The idea we just need to get back right to January 2020, and not a dollar more, is bananas. We should try to do better than that.”

Other critics say the bill is in several ways not generous enough to help Americans through one of the worst crises in generations.

The unemployment benefits are set to expire in August even if the virus resurges and the economy faces renewed turbulence. Senate Finance Chairman Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) has advocated for tying federal benefits to automatically adjust to economic conditions, such as the unemployment benefits, a position also supported in the initial White House proposal. That idea fell out of the bill amid concerns it would make Democrats’ price tag appear higher.

“We keep setting arbitrary deadlines and keep having arbitrary top-line numbers. It’s just nonsensical,” said Elizabeth Pancotti, policy director at Employ America, a policy think tank.

Other Democrats, such as Sens. Joe Manchin III (D-W.Va.) and Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), have argued for curbing the $400 weekly benefit down to $300 per week.

Senior Democrats to unveil $3,000-per-child benefit as Biden stimulus gains steam

Democrats also face questions over the structure of their plans on housing, health care and combating child poverty, among other issues.

Independent analyses have suggested renters owe as much as $75 billion, but the Democrats’ bill only includes $25 billion, according to Saoirse Gowan, a housing policy expert who recently left the Democracy Collaborative, a left-leaning think tank.

On health care, Democrats’ bill includes about $34 billion to increase the subsidies for Americans on the Affordable Care Act’s individual exchanges, but about $16 billion for states to expand Medicaid. Health-care experts point out that people enrolled in the ACA tend to have higher incomes than those who would be reached by expanding Medicaid, primarily a health program for the poor and disabled.

“Expanding Medicaid would be a much more efficient way of getting more people insured,” said Larry Levitt, executive vice president for health policy at the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonprofit group. “If your goal is universal coverage, increasing the subsidies somewhat is not going to get you there — although it does make insurance more affordable and puts money back in the pockets of people who are struggling.”

After the $15-an-hour minimum wage fell out of the bill, White House officials over the weekend repeatedly highlighted estimates showing the expansion in child benefits would cut poverty among children in the United States in half. But there, too, critics wonder if the stimulus plan was sufficiently well-designed. Under Biden’s proposal, that benefit ends after one year, meaning child poverty could double if Democrats do not find a way to expand it next year.

Democrats could have enacted different proposals, such as the one pushed by Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), that pay for a $3,000-per-year child benefit with a mixture of tax cuts and spending. Critics point out doing so would not have exposed families to a sudden income shock should Democrats fail to extend the new child benefit.

“If they don’t plan ahead, a year from now when this program is up for renewal, they could be back at square one,” said Sam Hammond, a welfare expert at the Niskanen Center, a think tank that helped draft Romney’s plan. “If they don’t figure this out, they are putting in jeopardy the ability for this credit to reach the lowest-income children.”

More news, tweets, videos in the comments.

Posted in News, Open Thread | Tagged Chris HayesCOVID-19 | 126 Replies

2/28 Labor News and Open Thread

The Progressive Wing Posted on February 28, 2021 by la58February 28, 2021

Most of it is old news plus a couple other things.

Continue reading →
Posted in Open Thread | Tagged grassroots, Labor, News, Open Thread | 94 Replies

2/23 Deb Haaland’s Hearing for Interior Post; News Roundup & Open Thread

The Progressive Wing Posted on February 23, 2021 by BennyFebruary 23, 2021

Deb Haaland’s confirmation hearing is today. She’s appearing before the Energy Committee, in which Joe Manchin is the Chair. Senator Henrich is introducing her. Link to the livestream if you care to watch.
https://www.energy.senate.gov/hearings/2021/2/hearing-to-consider-nomination-of-the-honorable-debra-haaland-to-be-the-secretary-of-the-interior.

GOP Rep Don Young of Alaska is also singing her praises as part of her introduction.

More news, tweets, videos, etc in the comments. See you there!

Posted in Bernie Sanders, News, Open Thread, Video | 129 Replies

2/21 Open Thread

The Progressive Wing Posted on February 21, 2021 by wi62February 21, 2021

Good morning my fellow nesters. just a couple thoughts for the day;

To no ones surprise Faux news is blaming green energy -wind power for the power outages in TX. I wonder how the wind turbines manage to operate in the north sea which has some of the harshest conditions on the earth?

AOC broke 4 mil in her Tx fundraising effort, meanwhile CANCRUZ does photo op handing out water damage control no doubt

One for Orl, whom would be your choice to run against DohSantis?

New report from Mars
.

Have a good one nesters

Posted in Open Thread | 119 Replies

2/20 News Roundup & Open Thread

The Progressive Wing Posted on February 20, 2021 by BennyFebruary 20, 2021

The sun is finally coming out!

We hit $3.2 MILLION in Texas relief support last night!

One of the places it’s going is the Houston Food Bank. I’m visiting Reps. @JacksonLeeTX18 & @LaCongresista with volunteers to pack meals.

The bank REALLY needs helping hands.

Can you join a shift? https://t.co/93wBfD4YdI pic.twitter.com/62AvCb4CL7

— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) February 20, 2021

Done! 👍

— Jon Ossoff (@ossoff) February 20, 2021

Pres. Biden, as he said he would yesterday, has granted the request from Texas Gov. Abbott, for a Major Disaster Declaration, per the White House

Some details here: pic.twitter.com/oT5fgsLBri

— Phil Mattingly (@Phil_Mattingly) February 20, 2021

One guy on twitter said Biden delayed relief to punish Texas for voting for Trump. tsk tsk.

More news, tweets, videos, etc in the comments. Fly high birdies!

Posted in Bernie Sanders, News, Open Thread | Tagged Texas Freeze | 59 Replies

2/16 Fat Tuesday OT & News Roundup

The Progressive Wing Posted on February 16, 2021 by BennyFebruary 16, 2021

News, tweets, videos, etc in the comments section. See you there!

Posted in Activism, News, Open Thread | 117 Replies

2/14 News Roundup and Valentine’s Day OT

The Progressive Wing Posted on February 14, 2021 by BennyFebruary 14, 2021

as the queen of Bernie memes it was my duty to make this valentine pic.twitter.com/auQU2ZuTAT

— believe survivors 💛💛 (@helmsinki) February 7, 2021

More tweets, news, videos, etc in the comments. Happy Valentine’s Day!

Posted in Bernie Sanders, News, Open Thread | 52 Replies

2/13 News Roundup & Open Thread (update)

The Progressive Wing Posted on February 13, 2021 by BennyFebruary 13, 2021

‘A Complete Capitulation’: Outrage as Democrats Abruptly Back Off Push for Witnesses in Trump Trial

Shortly after the Senate voted to pave the way for witnesses in Donald Trump’s impeachment trial, Democratic lawmakers and the former president’s defense team reached a deal to merely enter a statement by Republican Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler into evidence instead of having her testify under oath on her knowledge of a call between Trump and House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy.

The agreement effectively slammed the door on the possibility of witnesses in the trial, potentially clearing a path for a final vote on the impeachment charge on Saturday. After the deal was announced on the Senate floor, Democratic managers moved into closing arguments.

The abrupt change of course by Democrats was met with outrage by progressive observers and analysts who viewed Herrera Beutler’s potential testimony—and that of others who may have been compelled to come forward—as an opportunity to uncover additional information about Trump’s conduct on the day of the deadly attack on the U.S. Capitol last month.

“Even if you’re convinced no testimony will change the minds of 40 Republicans—and I think that’s a fair assumption—leaving witnesses on the table is an incredible mistake,” tweeted HuffPost’s Matt Fuller. “After impeachment managers presented a fantastic case, the decision to fold is what will be remembered.”

In the statement that was entered into the record, Herrera Beutler—one of the 10 House Republicans who voted to impeach Trump last month—said that “when McCarthy finally reached the president on January 6 and asked him to publicly and forcefully call off the riot, the president initially repeated the falsehood that it was antifa that had breached the Capitol.”

“McCarthy refuted that and told the president that these were Trump supporters,” Herrera Beutler said. “That’s when, according to McCarthy, the president said, ‘Well, Kevin, I guess these people are more upset about the election than you are.'”

Judd Legum of Popular Information argued that because Herrera Beutler’s statement had already been released to the public, the agreement to enter it into evidence is “objectively the same as a complete capitulation on witnesses and the Democrats should just own up to that.”

“This is retreat. White flag. Malpractice. Completely unstrategic,” added Adam Green, co-founder of the Progressive Change Campaign Committee (PCCC). “They just closed the door on others who may have stepped out, as Herrera Beutler urged last night. Just when we thought Dems were being bold and strategic. This is grabbing lameness out of the jaws of boldness.”

Watching the R's throw sand in the gears of the D's closing arguments gives me great optimism that they want to work with President Biden on all those agenda items that calling witnesses would have delayed.

— Charles P. Pierce (@CharlesPPierce) February 13, 2021

More news, tweets, videos, etc in comments section.

Posted in Bernie Sanders, News, Open Thread | Tagged Donald Trump | 125 Replies

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