Coronavirus: Joe Biden vows trillions of dollars of economic relief will be unveiled next week
- Biden also called for raising the minimum wage to US$15 an hour, a campaign promise, and for sending out US$2,000 in direct cash payments
- The president-elect said action was needed to help Americans get to the other side of the health and economic crisis
US President-elect Joe Biden said Americans need more economic relief from the coronavirus pandemic now and that he will deliver a plan costing “trillions” of dollars next week.
Biden, introducing several members of his economic team, spoke on Friday after data showed the US economy lost jobs for the first time in eight months in December as a resurgent Covid-19 pandemic closed restaurants and other businesses.
He said the proposal includes relief for state and local governments grappling with the pandemic, as well as new support for people who lost their jobs or cannot afford rent.
Biden also called for raising the minimum wage to US$15, a campaign promise, and for sending out $2,000 in direct cash payments. Democrats sought those cash payouts in the last relief bill, passed in December, but only were able to get Republicans to agree to US$600.
“We need more direct relief flowing to families, small businesses, including finishing the job of getting people that US$2,000 relief direct payment. US$600 is simply not enough,” he said. Biden said he would unveil the plan on Thursday.
The Democrat, who takes office on January 20, emerged emboldened from a pair of Senate elections this week in Georgia that handed Democrats a majority in that chamber to complement control of the House of Representatives. The majorities could allow Biden to pass larger spending bills.