This week, Biden signed the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan, which received final approval from Congress on Wednesday, despite opposition from all Senate Republicans. While the stimulus package has some gaps, it is a historic piece of anti-poverty legislation and will provide the kind of relief Democrats campaigned on. The bill is "expected to slash the poverty rate by about a third and reduce the share of children in poverty by more than half.”
H.r. 1: for the people
In 2018 and in 2020, Democrats campaigned on a platform of giving power back to the people by rooting out corruption, expanding voting rights, and limiting gerrymandering. As soon as the Democrats took the House in 2019, they created and passed H.R. 1, the For the People Act, but it was blocked by then-Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. This year, with a trifecta, Democrats have passed it through the House again, 220-210.
A humane immigration system
Photo by lcars on creativecommons.org
The Biden administration’s decision to reopen the Carrizo Springs facility this week touched a nerve. While it is no longer US policy to separate children from their families at the border, as was the case under Trump, the sight of fenced government facilities for children who arrive without a parent or guardian is a painful and powerful reminder of how much still needs to be done.