Joe Biden goes big with a $1.9 trillion economic aid plan that would double U.S. minimum wage

---

President-elect Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion economic relief proposal serves as the opening salvo in a legislative battle that could be prolonged by the go-big price tag and the inclusion of proposals opposed by many Republicans. Biden said Thursday night in unveiling his plan, it’s not hard to see that we’re in a once in several generations economic crisis. We have to act and we have to act now. Biden said he plans to unveil a second major package, aimed at longer-term economic rebuilding, at a joint session of Congress next month. Unity is not a pie-in-the-sky dream, it is a practical step to getting things done. The very health of our nation is at stake. Republican Senator Marco Rubio of Florida kicked off calls for breaking the relief plan into pieces, tweeting that since Biden served in the Senate for more than 35 years he knows the plan he outlined tonight can’t pass quickly.' Rubio called for proceeding with the $1,400 stimulus checks first. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce said in a statement Thursday it welcomes the introduction of President-elect Biden’s American Rescue Plan and singled out praise for the vaccination focus, while omitting comment on the minimum wage increase. Kevin Brady, the top Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee, said the package was bad for businesses. Special interests and liberals are cheering. The jobless and Main Street are left shaking their heads. Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi pledged in a statement to work quickly to put Biden’s vision into legislation that will pass both chambers and be signed into law. He said, I look forward to taking the lead on a proposal that puts a stop to needlessly lurching from crisis to crisis, and gives jobless workers the certainty that they will be able to buy groceries and make rent.