Biden proposes $1.9-trillion pandemic relief plan

President-elect Joe Biden has unveiled a pandemic relief plan worth a total $1.9 trillion, to include more stimulus checks and unemployment benefits.

VOA News reported:

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden unveiled a coronavirus response plan Thursday evening, emphasizing the urgency of passing legislation to help Americans through the pandemic and the economic crisis it has wrought.

“During this pandemic, millions of Americans, through no fault of their own, have lost the dignity and respect that comes with a paycheck,” Biden said in an address introducing the American Rescue Plan.

CNBC’s Thomas Franck wrote:

The plan is the first of two major spending initiatives Biden will seek in the first few months of his presidency, according to senior Biden officials.

The second bill, expected in February, will tackle the president-elect’s longer-term goals of creating jobs, reforming infrastructure, combating climate change and advancing racial equity.

CBS News reported:

“I believe we have a moral obligation,” Mr. Biden said in a speech on Thursday night. “In this pandemic in America, we cannot let people go hungry, we cannot let people get evicted, we cannot watch nurses, educators and others lose their jobs, we so badly need them. We must act now, and we must act decisively.” 

The transition team announced on Thursday Mr. Biden had selected Jaime Harrison, the former Democratic U.S. Senate candidate from South Carolina who raised record sums of money in his failed bid to unseat GOP Senator Lindsey Graham, to lead the Democratic National Committee.