Democrats in the house

The choice is clear: Democrats must make student loan forgiveness a priority ahead of minimum wage while they hold legislative capital. The path forward comes as a result of a recent decision to not include a $15 minimum wage increase in the multi-trillion dollar COVID-19 relief package currently making its way through Congress . President Joe Biden said he was "disappointed" but "respects" the ruling. At a recent CNN town hall , Biden expressed hesitation regarding bumping the minimum wage to $15—even though wages would increase incrementally until reaching $15 in 2025. After acknowledging he would be open to some kind of legislative negotiation that includes a gradual increase, he added, "It's totally legitimate for small business owners to be concerned." In Biden's political defense, the bill looked dead in the Senate anyway. Two Democrats— Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona—publicly expressed wariness regarding wage hikes as part … [Read more...] about Democrats Must Go All-in on Student Loan Forgiveness | Opinion

WASHINGTON: U.S. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi urged the U.S. Treasury on Wednesday not to hold up US$25 billion in cash grants approved by Congress last week to airlines for payroll costs. "We do want them to honor what our conversation was, which is this is just a stopping-off point for the check. It goes to the airline and directly to the employee," Pelosi told reporters on a conference call. "We just don't want to hold it up." Major aviation unions and some airline officials are concerned the U.S. Treasury will demand too much in warrants or equity as a condition of the grants for airline payroll costs. Treasury on Monday told airlines to propose financial instruments as part of their applications for grants that they want to see by Friday. Treasury did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday. The legislation requires equity, warrants or other financial compensation for taxpayers for the US$25 billion in loans, but gives Treasury Secretary Steven … [Read more...] about Democrats urge US Treasury not to delay US$25 billion in grants to airlines

President Joe Biden is making “a lobbying effort” to unify Senate Democrats on his $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill , which was earlier okayed by the House, The Washington Post reports. On Monday, Biden convened a group of these Democrats over a conference call, which focused on “targeting the dollars” that were included in the package, according to Senator Jon Tester. He was echoed by his colleague Joe Manchin who said that during the call, the senators were “just looking for a targeted bill”. “[We] want it to be very targeted, helping the people that need help the most”, Manchin stressed. The Post cited in this context two unnamed sources as saying that the Senate Democrats also discussed tightening income eligibility for the $1,400 stimulus checks, which are part of Biden’s COVID-19 relief package, also known as the American Rescue Plan. © REUTERS / JONATHAN ERNST U.S. President Joe Biden, his wife Jill Biden, U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris and … [Read more...] about Biden Reportedly Making ‘Lobbying Effort’ to Unify Senate Democrats Ahead of COVID Relief Bill Vote

WASHINGTON: The White House expects the impact of economic stimulus to counter the effects of coronavirus to be more than US$2 trillion, including around US$1.4 trillion from a prospective US Senate bill, aides said on Saturday (Mar 21). White House economic adviser Larry Kudlow told reporters he expects the coronavirus stimulus package being negotiated by the Senate this weekend would be worth about US$1.3 trillion or US$1.4 trillion. Eric Ueland, the White House legislative liaison, told reporters the net impact of the legislation and US Federal Reserve action would be "well north of US$2 trillion." “The net impact, in combination with the amount that you’ll see pass in the next couple of days, I hope, plus what the Federal Reserve can put in on the table, in combination with what we’re doing, will be well north of US$2 trillion," Ueland said. US Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer on Saturday said lawmakers were "making very good progress" on the Senate package. "I … [Read more...] about US coronavirus stimulus to be worth ‘north of US$2 trillion’: White House aide

Nearly two months after a mob of angry Trump supporters stormed the U.S. Capitol, members of Congress are beginning to dive into the fallout from an attack that left five people dead and many more injured. But so far there's been little clarity on what law enforcement knew before the riots that caused millions in property damage, threatened priceless Capitol artifacts and forced the federal government to consider the long-term mental effects on its employees. "While the physical scarring and damage to our magnificent Capitol building can be detected and repaired, the emotional aspects of the events of January 6 are more difficult to notice and treat," Catherine Szpindor, chief administrative officer of the U.S. House testified in a hearing Wednesday. Szpindor described the "harrowing hours" she spent sheltering with other employees "as chaos was ensuing just outside of our office in the Capitol." "After a critical incident, feelings of fear, desperation, anxiety and … [Read more...] about House Administrative Official Tells Congress Mental Impact of Capitol Riot Could Be Long-lasting