Biden to pitch for a ‘family plan’ in speech to Congress

WASHINGTON: Marking his first 100 days in office, President Joe Biden will use his first joint address to Congress to pitch a $1.8 trillion investment in children, families and education that would fundamentally transform the role government plays in American life.

Biden will make his case on Wednesday night before a pareddown gathering of mask-wearing legislators due to coronavirus restrictions and in a US Capitol still surrounded by black fencing after insurrectionists protesting his election occupied the very dais where he will stand.

In the nationally televised ritual of a president standing before Congress, Biden will lay out a sweeping proposal for universal preschool, two years of free community college, $225 billion for child care and monthly payments of at least $250 to parents. His ideas target frailties that were uncovered by the pandemic, and he will make the case that economic growth would best come from taxing the rich to help the middle class and the poor.

For Biden, whose moment has been nearly a half century in the making, his speech will also provide an update on progress in combating the Covid-19 crisis he was elected to tame, showcasing hundreds of millions of vaccinations and relief checks delivered to help offset the devastation wrought by a virus that has killed more than 573,000 people in the US. He will also champion his $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan, a staggering figure to be financed by higher taxes on corporations.

Seizing an opportunity born of calamity, Biden has embraced momentous action over incremental progress. But he will be forced to thread the needle between Republicans who cry government overreach and some Democrats who fear he won’t go big enough.

The Democratic President’s speech will underscore a trio of central campaign promises: to manage the deadly pandemic, to turn down the tension in Washington and to restore faith in government as an effective force for good. “He is a biggovernment Democrat, and he has not been at all reluctant to propose big initiatives in a response to a national crisis,” said Julian Zelizer, a Princeton University presidential historian.

This year’s scene will have a historic look: For the first time, a female vice president, Kamala Harris, will be seated behind the chief executive for the speech. And she will be seated next to another woman, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

The setting will be unlike for any of his predecessors, with members of Congress spread out and many Republicans citing “scheduling conflicts” to stay away. Senate Republican leader Mitch Mcconnell said Tuesday that Biden’s presidency “can best be described as the Biden bait and switch”.

Biden will also use his address to touch on the broader national reckoning over race in America, and to call on Congress to act on prescription drug pricing, gun control and modernising the nation’s immigration system.

In his first three months in office, Biden signed a $1.9 trillion Covid-19 relief bill — passed without a single GOP vote — and has shepherded direct payments of $1,400 per person to more than 160 million households.

New in his Wednesday speech is a “families” plan that could cement his legacy with $1.8 trillion worth of spending over 10 years. A significant amount would ensure that eligible families receive at least $250 monthly per child through 2025, extending the enhanced tax credit that was part of Biden’s Covid-19 aid. There would be $200 billion for free preschool for all 3- and 4-yearolds. Another $225 billion would pay for subsidised child care and invest in child care workers.

A national paid family and medical leave programme would be started at a cost of $225 billion. Another $200 billion would go to permanently reduce health insurance premiums for people who receive coverage through the Affordable Care Act. For $109 billion in federal money, people could attend community college tuitionfree for two years. There would be $85 billion for Pell Grants to help more people afford higher education. Historically Black and tribal institutions would be eligible to receive $46 billion.

Funding all of this would be a series of tax increases on the wealthy that would raise about $1.5 trillion over a decade. Biden wants to boost IRS enforcement and require disclosures by financial institutions. The White House estimates that would bring in $700 billion over 10 years. He would raise the top tax rate on the most affluent families from 37% to 39.6%..