In March 18, 2020, Trump signed into law the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES) to help support struggling businesses and unemployed individuals during the pandemic. However, this relief package and other unemployment benefits will expire by the end of this month. This means that if Congress is unable to compromise on a new stimulus package soon, 12 million Americans are set to lose the unemployment funds that have been supporting them for this past year when many have been laid off and job opportunities are scarce. With time running short, Congress has been negotiating on a new $908 billion economic relief package proposed by a bipartisan lawmaking group. Both parties agree that covid bill must be made, however, coming to a consensus has been very difficult so far due to opposition especially from Senator Mitch McConnell.
The initial plan was a $908 billion pandemic aid bill was drafted by moderates in both parties that would support small businesses, state and local governments, schools, unemployed individuals, healthcare providers, and funding for the distribution of the vaccine, but does not include stimulus checks this time. Senator McConnell has adamantly refused to endorse this $908 billion bill as he tries to push for his own bill, which is narrower. It omits benefits for state and local governments but gives funds for education, aid for small businesses, and pandemic liability protections for businesses, which Democrats immediately rejected. Republicans have shown resistance to the original bill because they believed that liability protections for businesses were too limited and have long-resisted state/local government funding. On the other hand, Democrats like Pelosi and Mnuchin have rejected McConnell’s bill and instead have proposed their own $916 billion alternative bill. This alternative bill would include $600 stimulus checks but no additional federal supplemental unemployment benefits. With limited time, Senator Mitt Romney understands the urgency of compromising and believes that they should just put aside their disagreements: “on state and local and liability we wait, given the time frame, until next year.”
Congress’ negotiations right now is just a chaotic mess. Compromise between the two parties has been nearly impossible even with a bipartisan group that has been “privately working for weeks to force their leadership to a compromise.” Democrats have said that minority leader Chuck Schumer has “been begging to negotiate with McConnell for half a year.” Millions of Americans’ financial support are on the line and it seems that this bipartisan proposal is the most realistic plan as of now because something is better than nothing. If Congress still can’t come to an agreement in the next week, Americans are going to lose even more faith in our government and “assume that government is broken.” The opposing nature of the parties in Congress is one of the drawbacks to our system of government today. Constant opposition and political polarization have made bipartisan agreements more difficult today than ever fail such as what happened with Obama’s original health care reform plan. Our system of government is not very efficient. It takes a really long time to pass legislation when the House and Senate are controlled by opposing parties. Even if it does pass, Congress will still have to convince Trump to sign the bill. I believe this inefficiency is part of the reason why we have not gotten covid under control in the US yet.
The initial plan was a $908 billion pandemic aid bill was drafted by moderates in both parties that would support small businesses, state and local governments, schools, unemployed individuals, healthcare providers, and funding for the distribution of the vaccine, but does not include stimulus checks this time. Senator McConnell has adamantly refused to endorse this $908 billion bill as he tries to push for his own bill, which is narrower. It omits benefits for state and local governments but gives funds for education, aid for small businesses, and pandemic liability protections for businesses, which Democrats immediately rejected. Republicans have shown resistance to the original bill because they believed that liability protections for businesses were too limited and have long-resisted state/local government funding. On the other hand, Democrats like Pelosi and Mnuchin have rejected McConnell’s bill and instead have proposed their own $916 billion alternative bill. This alternative bill would include $600 stimulus checks but no additional federal supplemental unemployment benefits. With limited time, Senator Mitt Romney understands the urgency of compromising and believes that they should just put aside their disagreements: “on state and local and liability we wait, given the time frame, until next year.”
Congress’ negotiations right now is just a chaotic mess. Compromise between the two parties has been nearly impossible even with a bipartisan group that has been “privately working for weeks to force their leadership to a compromise.” Democrats have said that minority leader Chuck Schumer has “been begging to negotiate with McConnell for half a year.” Millions of Americans’ financial support are on the line and it seems that this bipartisan proposal is the most realistic plan as of now because something is better than nothing. If Congress still can’t come to an agreement in the next week, Americans are going to lose even more faith in our government and “assume that government is broken.” The opposing nature of the parties in Congress is one of the drawbacks to our system of government today. Constant opposition and political polarization have made bipartisan agreements more difficult today than ever fail such as what happened with Obama’s original health care reform plan. Our system of government is not very efficient. It takes a really long time to pass legislation when the House and Senate are controlled by opposing parties. Even if it does pass, Congress will still have to convince Trump to sign the bill. I believe this inefficiency is part of the reason why we have not gotten covid under control in the US yet.
12 comments:
It's honestly very disappointing to see such a bipartisan at a moment where our country should be united. After 10 million jobs lost and a record high of 3,000 deaths due to covid recently this is the time to show empathy for others and work together. I agree with Tiffany that if we can't even get a stimulus package signed and through how are we supposed to get a pandemic under control? A lack of compromise and stubbornness is causing people to loose their lives daily. I appreciate Senator Mitt Romney, as you mentioned, trying to get both sides to put down their disagreements and emphasize the urgency for compromising.
I honestly don't know if Trump would sign the bill but after handling the pandemic this way (or lack of handling it) it's the least he could do.
Personally, I like the republican plan better than the democratic plan because a one time check of 600 dollar check does not seem as helpful as unemployment benefits and allocating money to small businesses in my opinion. If the 600 dollar check is to help families get through the holiday season it makes a lot of sense but if people are thinking long term the republican plan seems much better. One thing that worries me is that their is no bipartisan agreement on a stimulus package which is something that both parties agree is neccesary. Usual government spending is something that congress has been able to easily pass bipartisanly. Recently however I think we have start to see a decline in this with a rise in government shutdowns. I hope that this is not a sign that bipartisan ship will no longer exist in the future. If the united states gets to the point where splitting government is no longer possible we are in for some tough years. Problems like this are exactly why George Washington argued against a party system in his farewell address.
I think that with everything happening this year, I feel like the republicans and democrats should be a little bit more united in the needs of the country. The polarization and political disagreements are what really slow down our already inefficient government. With this pandemic, I feel like we should push for a bill that helps as many Americans as possible, putting aside politics and thinking about the necessities of life alone. It's heartbreaking to see so many unemployed, fighting so hard to get by, and for such an incredibly long amount of time. I agree that our government's inefficiency is partly why we haven't controlled COVID-19 in America yet. I know that others agree as well but it's so frustrating to continue to see people put things on the agenda that aren't as crucial as the lives that are at stake. I hope that our government and the current president can compromise for the greater good of this country; we're all in need of some type of relief from the hardships that this pandemic has brought us.
This is an example in which polarization and partisanship truly has an enormous effect on people's lives, especially amidst an emergency in which people across the country do need help. I think regardless of political party, people can agree that many families and people are being negatively effected economically, in terms of health, with employment and unemployment, as well as in most other aspects of life. It is in times like these when citizens should be able to turn to experts and to the government for guidance and support, and there were times when doing that presumably equated to substantial and effective response. But throughout the entire covid-19 pandemic, it has been pretty clear that this is not the case. At the end of the day, an inability to get stuff done on the government's side only adds stress, fear, and uncertainty among a majority of people that they're supposed to represent and support. But I guess it is difficult when citizens are still denying the validity and the dangers surrounding this virus. It should not be about democrat vs republican, but it needs to prioritize efficiency in helping people, especially after they failed to take sufficient action at the beginning. I think many of us are waiting for the government and president to have a positive impact during this pandemic because so many people across the country need it, and they people in charge to respond effectively to that.
Honestly, the $600 stimulus checks always seemed way too low for a lot of people and inefficient considering it's only the average of how much most people need to get through the month. It's representative of how much compromise is necessary to get partisan agreement on an issue like this, especially with the context of the pandemic response. How on earth are we supposed to help the poor if a lot of our highest politicians can't even agree on how deadly the disease is, or how much of the eviction crisis and wage crisis is worth addressing? Especially since most of the stubbornness right now seems to be the result of conservatives refusing to compromise on any welfare or health issue, like how Democrats kept begging to negotiate with McConnell. It's definitely exposing a lot of inefficiency due to polarization in government right now.
Its surprising that even with the gravity of the situation that congress members are still unable to formulate a compromise. Although the democratic plan sounds like a solid solution, the republican plan seems more beneficial long term due to the support it provides businesses. Even with the recent release of the vaccination in its trial stage, its still unlikely that this pandemic will be over soon. So, the long term benefits that the republican plan provides to small businesses will most likely champion those of the democratic plan. However, the main con of the republican plan is its minimal amount of support for unemployed individuals. Regardless of the plan, congress members need to put their heads together and a decision needs to be made.
This isn't completely surprising as issuing stimulus packages has always been a difficult compromise between parties. Given how polarized America is, agreeing upon such a large coronavirus aid package will be incredibly lengthy with lots of dissenters. This was made apparent after the recession in 2008, Obama had to issue a stimulus package immediately that he dubbed to benefit the long term, but Republicans weren't satisfied because it didn't pick up the poverty rate and helped expand the economy. This coronavirus pandemic could be compared to that of the housing market crisis but even more polarized, especially with the stubbornness of both parties and key senators such as Mitch McConnell in all his adamance.
So many Americans are struggling financially right now, and it is extremely disappointing to see the livelihoods and job security of so many at risk over a frivolous bipartisan debate. It is essential that Congress agrees upon a new aid relief bill by the end of this year, before it is too late. The current bipartisan proposal plans on allocating funds to local governments, small businesses, transportation, postal service, among other sectors. The approval of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine will also ensure that the current proposal provides $51 billion to COVID-19 related efforts. In addition to the bipartisan proposal, there are other stimulus packages, such as the $916 billion one, as proposed by Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. However, his plan received criticism from his desired funding reduction for unemployment benefits in order to offset the pricier stimulus package. It remains unclear whether or not Congress will pass the stimulus bill, as negations are expected to continue past Dec. 18, 2020, when the government funding deadline takes place. In a recent interview, Sen. Bernie Sanders exclaimed his confidence in receiving a vote, or spending Christmas in the Senate, paralleling the Obama administration's Christmas Eve health care vote. Hopefully a decision is made sooner rather than later, but if the bill continues to get dragged out, more Americans will continue to suffer, with no clear ending in sight.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2020/12/13/covid-relief-will-americans-get-new-stimulus-check/6526282002/
I agree with Sanya, when did politics come before the welfare of Americans? The only upside here is that Biden has already created a team to combat the ever growing issue. Biden has a lengthy plan to help people through the pandemic. From his own website, he lays out a seven point plan to deal with many aspects of Covid, but only a bullet point under "navigating the pandemic" refers to the idea of providig resources to small business and families. However, this only applies to resources such as masks and shields. It makes me wonder if Biden's plan will even help with revitalizing the economy.
https://joebiden.com/covid19/
Honestly, I am not very surprised to see Congress fail to come to a compromise. We have seen similar situations in the last few years with government shutdowns happening more often (and for longer) as a result of Congress failing to approve legislation to fund the federal government. For the last decade, political polarization has effectively killed off bipartisanship in America. The inability for Congress to do its job in passing legislation is a massive problem that needs to be addressed. Debate is a good thing, but not to the point where nothing is being done at all. Of course, a bill such as the COVID stimulus bill is immensely complex and requires time to iron out all of the details. Figuring out the best plan for millions of Americans in need is no easy task. However, in a situation like this one, time is of the essence. Congress needs to put aside their ideological differences and focus on saving people’s livelihoods.
I agree with all of the comments above, this isn't a very surprising thing that Congress cannot come to a compromise, especially with all the controversy and divide that has resulted from the election results. But stimulus checks are very important, this is the livelihood of the people and at times like this the citizens of the US need to be able to look up to their leaders in office and see a plan, and a hope for the betterment of the future. Right now Americans all across the country are losing their jobs, scrambling around to make ends meet and the Stimulus checks are a huge help to them and Congress really needs to let their own personal opinions aside and come up with some sort of compromise for the people. This year has been so crazy for everyone and for so many different reasons, but right now more than ever, our government needs to come together and help those that need it.
It is not extremely shocking to see the stimulus packages serving as another incredibly hyperpartisan issue. There is certainly a mixed response to CARES, but many Americans are in need for Covid stimulus packages. Congress must work together and compromise in order to help Americans across the country. Many Americans lives are currently full of many uncertainties and problems, and the stimulus package would be a great help. This should not be a partisan issue because it all comes down to the economic relief that could be provided to Americans, from both parties, who have been hurt by the effects of Covid. Congress must make a decision.
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