Democrats Draft $3.5 Trillion Social Policy Bill To Advance Biden Agenda

Democrats are meeting this week to begin drafting a $3.5 trillion social policy bill, which, if passed, would be the most significant expansion of America’s social safety net since the 1960s.

In order to pass, President Joe Biden will need the support of every single Democrat in the Senate and nearly every single vote in the House.

Sens. Joe Manchin III (D-West Virginia) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Arizona) have already voiced opposition to the bill, which would transform the social safety net as we know it.

The new bill would affect every American, from conception to death.

Heather Boushey, an economic adviser to the president, commented on the new bill: “Polls have shown for a very long time that these issues to support American families were important, and were popular, but all of a sudden they became not a ‘nice to have’ but a ‘must-have.'”

The Democrats’ plan proposes taxing the wealthy and large corporations to pay for the new programs.

“We’re talking about free or affordable child care where no one pays more than 7 percent of their income; we’re talking about universal pre-K programs with two years of formal instruction; we’re talking about two years of postsecondary education.” Rep. Jamaal Bowman (D-New York) said. “This is how you build a strong nation.”

Democrats are proposing paid family and medical leave as well as funding for child care. Another part of the bill proposes universal prekindergarten and eldercare programs.

School nutrition programs and reduced-price meals would also be implemented, following in the footsteps of pandemic-era education policies.

Additionally, Democrats want to ensure two years of higher education for high school graduates and expanded federal financial aid.

Rep. Donald Beyer Jr. (D-Virginia) said: “Many of us feel that this is the biggest opportunity we will have in our careers to do something deeply structural and transformational to our economy. And we should not miss it.”

Article by Elizabeth Letsou