United States: Biden unveils his ambitious plan to "save" the American economy

Five days before his inauguration, the President-elect of the United States Joe Biden presented Thursday evening his plan to support and revive the American economy, severely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.

Biden proposes to inject $ 1900 billion (or 1,564 billion euros), double the bipartisan plan voted by Congress, which Trump initially rejected at the end of December.

It almost equals the first plan to 2000 billion voted in March 2020 to face the first consequences of the pandemic.

Key point of its project: the Democratic administration is planning targeted aid, in particular for the 18 million unemployed whose additional allowance linked to Covid would increase from 300 to 400 dollars per week.

A check for $ 1,400 (1,153 euros) would be sent to most households.

For the most modest, this sum would meet the urgent need for rent, for others, it will sooner or later be consumed in various purchases.

Money budgets are also provided to speed up tests and vaccines, and to provide liquidity to small businesses.

The worst economic crisis since the 1930s

This new spending comes at a critical time for the world's largest economy, which is experiencing its worst economic crisis since the 1930s. The violent epidemic that began in early December and seems not to subside has once again rocked the oil market. work in scarlet, primarily affecting low-income positions in cafes, restaurants, shops and services.

"We can not afford to stand idly by," defended Joe Biden Thursday evening, presenting, from his stronghold of Wilmington, Delaware, this package of aid, called "backup plan".

It also plans to spend 170 billion to reopen schools, whose closure in many parts of the country has deprived millions of workers, especially women, of their jobs.

Biden has given himself 100 days to get the majority of school children back to school, allowing their parents to return to work or find one again.

An envelope is also planned to allow local and national authorities to maintain the employment of educators, police, firefighters and public health agents.

This last measure is likely to arouse the anger of Republicans in the Senate, who had blocked at the end of 2020 any economic support plan including funds for municipalities.

$ 5,200 billion in total

In total, this new plan, which has yet to be voted on by Congress, would bring the total fiscal stimulus measures taken by the US economy since the start of the crisis to $ 5 trillion, or nearly a quarter of GDP. American (21,345 billion in 2019).

Next month, at a joint session of Congress, Joe Biden will present his green economy investment plan.

With the ambition to create "millions" of "well paid" manufacturing jobs on American soil.

Following his predecessor Donald Trump in his desire to favor “Made in America”, and to reindustrialize America, the Democrat began to dream: “imagine a future:

made in America, entirely made in America and entirely by Americans,

”he said, stressing that taxpayers' money would be used to“ rebuild America ”.

“We will buy American products, supporting millions of American industrial jobs,” he said.

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The president-elect also hopes to pass the increase in the minimum wage to $ 15 an hour, more than double the current $ 7.25.

This increase could pass in Congress by a simple majority as part of a special budget tool, such as unemployment benefits.

But other measures, including aid to states and money for health care, will likely require 60 votes in the Senate, which will have a partisan 50-50 split from January 20, the Vice President's vote Kamala Harris conferring control on Democrats.

It will therefore be necessary to negotiate to win the support of the Republicans.

It is probably for this reason that Joe Biden did not mention Thursday evening the tax hike planned in his campaign program.

The candidate had pledged to increase the solidarity of the country's largest companies and people earning more than $ 400,000 per year.