• Rising deaths, poor jobs report underscore mess Biden inherits.
WILMINGTON, Del. — President-elect Joe Biden is predicting a “bleak future” if Congress doesn’t take speedy action on a coronavirus aid bill amid a nationwide spike in the virus that’s hampering the country’s economic recovery.
Healso expressed concern that so far he’s seen “no detailed plan” from the Trump administration on how to distribute an approved vaccine, but he said he and his team are working on their own proposal to fill in the gaps.
Mr. Biden delivered remarks Friday reacting to November’s national jobs report, which showed a sharp decrease in U.S. hiring even as the country is about 10 million jobs below pre-pandemic levels. The Democrat called the report “dire” and said it “shows the economy is stalling,” but he said quick action from Congress can halt some of the damage.
Surging cases of the virus have led states and municipalities to roll back reopening plans. And more restrictions may be on the way as lower temperatures and holiday travel lead to records for confirmed cases and deaths. Mr. Biden has said that while he doesn’t support a nationwide lockdown, he plans to ask Americans to commit to 100 days of maskwearing to help combat the virus as one of his first acts as president.
But one of his major challenges in turning the tide of the pandemic will be distributing a vaccine. While the Trump administration has undertaken some planning around distribution, Mr. Biden said Friday that their proposal lacks significant details.
One of the major questions, Mr. Biden added, is how to get the vaccine to minority communities, which are disproportionately affected. He asked government infectious-disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci to be part of his COVID-19 team to help with that planning. Mr. Biden said the distribution alone was a “very expensive proposition.”
That’s part of the reason the president-elect has issued calls for Congress to take action on a coronavirus relief bill now.
While he’s thrown his support behind a bipartisan economic relief bill of about $900 billion, Mr. Biden has called it just a “down payment” and has said much more will be needed once he takes office.
On Friday, he said he and his team have been consulting with labor leaders, CEOs, mayors and governors in crafting their own coronavirus aid bill, which will be his first legislative priority.
Mr. Biden expressed optimism that he’ll be able to cut a deal with Republicans, but he’s certain to face a heavy lift in navigating any bill through a closely divided Senate.