In response to President Joe Biden’s meeting with a group of Republican Senators to discuss COVID relief, Protect Our Care’s Coronavirus War Director Zac Petkanas released the following statement:
“Tonight, Senate Republicans marched into the White House to demand that President Biden slash his COVID relief proposal so deeply that wouldn’t come close to addressing the raging health and economic crisis.
“President Joe Biden should be commended for hearing them out but he should feel no compunction moving forward and taking the bold action our nation needs. The GOP’s unserious proposal proves they aren’t actually interested in working with the White House to get the American people the help they need.
“On the other hand, President Biden’s American Rescue Plan not only meets the urgency of the moment but it is broadly supported by the American people. It offers families badly-needed support with direct stimulus checks, expands unemployment insurance, funds vaccine distribution and nationwide testing, provides money to get kids back in school, offers housing assistance for families trying to keep a roof over their heads, and includes state and local aid for communities who need to keep first-responders on the job.
“Regardless of whether Republican lawmakers support the legislation, polling shows his proposal already has bipartisan support from a majority of Democrats, Independents and Republicans from across the country.
“While it would be nice if Republican Senators got on board to support this crucial bill, they will have to answer for why they attempted to block such a popular and necessary effort.”