HUNTINGTON v CHARLESTON, W.Va. (WSAZ) – As we navigate month 10 of the COVID-19 pandemic, the weight resting on the shoulders of American families is insurmountable.
On Thursday, Vice President Kamala Harris spoke exclusively with WSAZ’s Amanda Barren. We had the opportunity to ask her if help is coming – and when.
“So far, one in seven families describes their household as hungry, one in six can’t afford the rent, and one in four small businesses is closing or has already closed, so it’s a big deal in West Virginia and it whole country, “Harris said.” And that’s why the president and I are offering the American bailout. “
The American Rescue Plan (ARP) would put cash in American’s bank accounts. It has the framework for help for small businesses, money for return to education and an extension of the moratorium on evictions and exclusion.
It also has long-term unemployment benefits.
As the vice president for the ARP argues, many people in our area feel they are advocating for their jobs in the coal, oil and gas industries. This comes on the heels of executive orders signed by President Biden related to the energy sector that jeopardize traditional energy jobs.
We asked Harris about plans for retraining those workers, something people have heard before with little consequence.
“All those skilled workers who are in the coal industry transferring those skills to what we need to do in terms of reclaiming abandoned landmines; what we should do to stop leaks from oil and gas wells; and transferring those important skills to work that remains to be done and done, ”said the vice president.
Harris says the country needs to act urgently. That is why she continues to advocate for passing ARP. This is because legislation has been introduced by House Republicans, including West Virginia Senator Shelley Moore-Capito, who passed the “Protecting our Wealth of Energy Resources (POWER) Act of 2021.” The POWER Act would prohibit the president or his secretaries of the United States Department of the Interior (DOI), the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), and the United States Department of Energy (DOE) from blocking the leasing of energy or minerals and consent To be granted on federal lands and waters without congressional approval. Capito says the president’s order is killing US jobs and attacking the oil and gas industry.
“Why would [oil, gas, and coal workers] do you believe it will be different this time? Barren asked.
“The president was very clear that this is not about existing leases in terms of coal and what we are doing in terms of oil and coal and federal lands. This is about what we need to do to create more jobs, ”said Harris. “The president strongly believes that when we think about saving our environment … when you talk to him about climate change, the first thing he talks about is job creation.”
ARP includes benefits such as $ 1,400 incentive vouchers for each person in a household and would set up a national vaccination program, among other things.
“[ARP is] about opening schools in a safe way, about getting support for small businesses, about getting shelter for families. So many people have been unemployed for almost a year right now, ”the vice president told WSAZ. “The President and I feel very strongly that these are the moments when we face a crisis of unbelievable magnitude [and] that the American people deserve their leaders to stand up and stand up for them. “
West Virginia has led the nation when it comes to taking guns. However, President Biden said earlier this week that vaccine distribution would be based on a state’s population. West Virginia is a small state and has one of the oldest and most vulnerable populations.
Barren asked the vice president whether it was fair to base the distribution on a state’s population, especially when small states like West Virginia are efficiently getting people vaccinated.
“Our plan is to get everyone vaccinated … Our plan was and remains that 100 million vaccinations will be performed during the first 100 days of our administration. That’s why we have the ‘American Rescue Plan’, because we have more than 320 million people in our country, ”the vice president told Barren. “It’s also about looking at child poverty in our country that has been brought to the fore and has grown exponentially as their parents are now unemployed. [ARP] is also about getting children out of poverty. “
With viewers in our region overwhelmingly backing the previous government, Thursday was also an opportunity for the vice president to reach out to voters whose ideological values differ. “Why would they trust you and the president?” Barren asked the vice president.
“Because we have faith in the American people,” the vice president told Barren. “We ran like Democrats, but we are Americans and we will take the lead as Americans. We want our country to be strong, we want our country to be healthy, we want our children to thrive, and that’s it. That’s why we do this. We’re here to support you, and the reason I’m talking to you here in West Virginia is because everyone matters whether you voted for us or not. The elections are over and now is the time to support the American people; to guide people, lift them and say, “Hello neighbor!” We are all in this together. We do it all together. “
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