Last updated on July 18th, 2023 at 12:31 pm
House Democrats on Monday formally proposed sending $1,400 stimulus checks to individuals making up to $75,000 a year, a sign that they aren’t flinching in the face of new efforts to sharply limit the number of Americans who receive direct payments under President Joe Biden’s COVID rescue package.
According to The Washington Post, “Senior House Democrats on Monday night proposed sending full $1,400 stimulus payments to Americans with up to $75,000 in annual income, rejecting an early plan to sharply curtail the benefits.”
There has been some talk in recent days about lowering the threshold to $50,000 for individuals and $100,000 for married couples, but that received quick pushback from lawmakers, including Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Jon Ossoff (D-GA).
While the debate over which Americans will receive a $1,400 stimulus check is still unsettled, it is clear that most Democrats – including President Biden – are in favor of going big rather than coming up short.
More from The Washington Post:
House Ways and Means Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-Mass.) released legislation that would send the full benefit to singles earning $75,000 pear year and couples earning $150,000 per year. Congressional Democrats had explored curtailing that benefit to $50,000 for individuals and $100,000 for married couples, a position embraced by Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), the most conservative Democrat.
Compared to prior plans, Democrats are accelerating the rate at which the benefit declines for higher-earners, a move intended to prevent wealthy Americans from receiving stimulus payments. The phase-out diminishes at the point at which singles earning $100,000 and couples earning $200,000 would receive no stimulus payments.
Biden and the Democrats have public opinion on their side
Democrats have clearly learned their lesson from 2009, when they let Republicans dictate what course to take on the Recovery Act that Barack Obama eventually signed into law.
While Obama’s stimulus package laid the groundwork for a historic streak of job growth, most Democrats now agree that a larger rescue bill would have led to a stronger and quicker recovery.
That’s why Joe Biden and the Democrats are standing firm in their belief that Congress must go big in delivering relief to the American people and a much-needed jolt to the U.S. economy.
Not only is it good economics, but public opinion is clearly on their side.
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