President Joe Biden speaks to members of the press on the South Lawn on his return to the White House after a trip to Camp David, in Washington, March 21, 2021.
Erin Scott | Reuters
The White House will consider splitting an estimated $ 3 trillion economic recovery proposal into two bills, The New York Times reported Monday.
President Joe Biden wants to inject more money into the economy after this month’s expiration of his top priority, a $ 1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package. His administration and Congressional Democrats hope to revamp the country’s infrastructure, fight climate change, and kickstart an improving US economy.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki downplayed the Times report Monday. In a statement to NBC News, she said, “President Biden and his team are considering a range of possible options to invest in working families and reform our tax laws so that work pays off, not wealth.”
“Those talks are underway, so any speculation about future economic proposals is premature and not a reflection of the White House thinking,” she said.
The Times reported that the president’s advisers will come up with a plan this week that would divide the recovery proposal into two parts. According to the newspaper, money would be invested in boosting production, improving transportation systems, expanding broadband access and reducing CO2 emissions.
The other would focus on reducing economic inequality through investment in paid time off, universal pre-K and community college, the report said. Biden is expected to pursue the infrastructure component first.
It is now unclear whether Republicans would support both parts of Biden’s recovery plan. The GOP has generally opposed the president’s plans to make corporations and the richest Americans pay for the initiatives.
The Dow Jones Industrial average hit an all-day high on Monday, more than 110 points higher than the Times report. The reported price tag for Biden’s plan is greater than what most Wall Street companies, including Goldman, expected, as most saw an infrastructure package worth about $ 2 trillion. Caterpillar shares traded higher after the news.
White House spokesmen, Senate Leader Chuck Schumer, DN.Y., and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., Did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
While politicians on both sides of the political corridor agree that America’s infrastructure needs to be repaired, they have not yet come to a consensus on what items to pay for and how best to finance the massive enterprise.
Some moderates, including conservative Democrat Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia, have made it clear that they will only vote in favor of a plan that makes a genuine attempt at duality and is paid almost in full. Democrats have approved the pandemic relief package on their own through budget reconciliation, and some members of the caucus have supported the process of approving an infrastructure plan.
Biden met with bipartisan senators over infrastructure earlier this month. A group of 20 senators from both parties reportedly met last week on how to move forward with the next major policy initiative in Congress.
During his presidential campaign, Biden said he would be open to raising taxes to pay for various agenda items. At the time, Biden backed raising the corporate tax rate to 28%, which would amount to a partial rollback of President Donald Trump’s historic tax cuts in 2017.
Biden has also agreed to raise the top marginal tax rate to 39.6% and tax capital gains and dividends at the higher common income tax rate.
Read the full Times report here.
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