Biden Considering Dem Plan to Cut Even More of the Middle Class Out of Next Stimulus Checks
When then-President Donald Trump called on Congress to revise its COVID stimulus package, he was demanding that the American middle class receive a bigger chunk of the relief money.
Now, President Joe Biden is doing exactly the opposite.
Infuriatingly, Biden is reportedly even claiming to be keeping his promise to the American people by offering $1,400 stimulus payments per person while remaining open to the idea of cutting out many middle-class citizens from eligibility for the full payments.
Prior relief packages sent stimulus checks to single people making $75,000 or less and married couples making $150,000 or less, then started phasing out for higher-earning Americans.
However, according to The Wall Street Journal, some senior Democrats are now considering sending the full $1,400 payments only to individuals making $50,000 or less and married couples making $100,000 or less. The payments would reportedly start phasing out for people who earn more than those thresholds, though the Biden administration has not publicly detailed the income cutoffs that it thinks should be implemented.
Many Republicans have voiced concerns over the exorbitant cost that Biden’s roughly $1.9 trillion proposal would bring with it.
Some Republicans are calling for $1,000 payments per person that would start to phase out for individuals earning $40,000 or more and married couples making $80,000 or more.
On Wednesday, Biden reportedly made it clear he would be willing to sign off on a targeted plan that cuts out more of the middle class.
“We can better target that number. I’m OK with that,” the president told House Democrats, according to The Wall Street Journal.
However, “Mr. Biden told House Democrats on Wednesday that he wouldn’t change the amount of the proposed $1,400 payments, saying people had been promised that amount,” the outlet reported citing people familiar with the call.”
White House press secretary Jen Psaki later confirmed that Biden was open to changing the threshold for who would qualify to receive a $1,400 check, saying, “That’s something that has been under discussion.”
Despite this idea gaining momentum in the government, according to a compilation of recent polls shared by Newsweek, the prospects of reducing the number of recipients eligible for the full $1,400 checks or reducing the payments themselves are unpopular.
Newsweek also noted although Biden “expressed a desire for a bipartisan deal,” some Democrats have shown a willingness to push through their plan with or without support from across the aisle.
Soon enough, a new COVID relief plan will no doubt soon be passed, although this time, many of the Americans hurting the most might not get the relief they need.
Traditionally, the conservative argument would be that the government doesn’t owe money to the American people.
However, this case is an exception for one important reason: Many people are financially struggling right now because of the government-imposed lockdowns of economies and communities.
Those among us hurt by these government measures deserve some sort of recompense, especially the most hardworking among us toiling away in the middle class.
Republicans opposed to the bill point out its extraordinary cost and how such plans might mortgage our country’s future.
Those concerns are valid and should be considered.
However, Biden and his Democratic cohorts aren’t motivated by similar concerns.
Instead, their calls to reduce COVID relief eligibility reflect their disdain and dismissive attitude toward the middle class they always claim to care so much about.
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