The Politics of Making the 2021 American Rescue Plan Into Law
On Saturday, March 6, 2021, after over 27 hours of wrangling, arguing, fruitless delays, negotiations, and vote-count whipping, the United…
On Saturday, March 6, 2021, after over 27 hours of wrangling, arguing, fruitless delays, negotiations, and vote-count whipping, the United States Senate passed the $1.9 Trillion American Rescue Plan first proposed by President Joe Biden almost as soon as he took office just 45 days ago.
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The bill passed by the Senate differs in several areas then the bill passed in the House, and it must still be voted on once again by the House before heading to the President’s desk for signature.
The final vote in the Senate was 50–49; it would have been 50/50 if one of the Republican Senators from Alaska had to make an emergency trip home because of a family emergency. Since not a single Republican Senator voted for this bill, if the vote had been 50–50, Vice-President Kamala Harris would have been called upon to issue the deciding vote.
Passing the Bill Through Reconciliation
Although many of the current Republicans in Congress complained that this bill was being “pushed through” without bi-partisan support, what they really meant was that there was no bipartisan support in Congress. However, polls showed that the American Rescue Plan (ARP) enjoyed 76% support from all Americans, including 60% of Republicans.
It was obvious from the beginning that the Republicans would use whatever power they had to thwart this bill. When President Biden invited a group of Republicans to the White House in a bipartisan gesture of goodwill, that group proposed less than 1/3 of what was in the ARP.
When President Obama and Vice-President Biden went through this before during the Great Recession, Republicans demanded so many changes that whittled down the amount really needed, that the final stimulus bill did nowhere near what it should have, caused the recovery to be longer, and they STILL did not vote for the final bill.
Now-President Biden and the Democrats were adamant that that scenario would NOT happen again. They weren’t going to play the Republicans’ game of “unity” and “bipartisanship” and then hoping the Republicans would vote for the plan.
“Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.”
Enter Reconciliation. THAT is how the bill was passed in the Senate without a single Republican vote.
Yes, the Democrats, especially the progressive wing, had to give up some important elements, but that what negotiation calls for. Usually, there is the opportunity for only one reconciliation usage per year, but this year, we get a second reconciliation chance.
President Biden’s 1st 100 Days
The “First 100 Days” paradigm started with President Franklin Roosevelt’s administration, And many of the progressive policy proposals of President Biden resemble those of President Roosevelt (whose proposals were also called “socialist” by the right-wing…). But President Roosevelt had a huge majority in both houses of Congress during the worst times of the Great Depression, while President Biden has only the slimmest of majorities to work with today, although the dual crises of the pandemic and the resulting failing economy make today’s challenges even worse than most of those in the 1930s.
To get this bill into law in his first 54 days (by March 14, 2021) is an exceptional accomplishment for him as the Democratic president, for House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA), and for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY).
By the time the 1st 100 days are reached, the vaccination rollout will be much farther along than the president even projected on January 20.
I am looking forward to all of the benefits that ALL Americans (not just the ones who voted for President Biden) coming soon because of this monumental and highly significant new law.
About Me
I am a native Detroiter, a wife, mother, grandmother, business owner, and homeowner, and I am recently semi-retired and loving it. I would love for you to follow me on my Facebook and on my Instagram pages. Any opinions expressed in this publication are my own.
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