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      Biden signs $1.9tn Covid relief ahead of first primetime address as president

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      Joe Biden signed the historic $1.9tn Covid-19 relief package into law on Thursday, hours before he will deliver his first primetime TV address as US president to mark one year since the virus triggered widespread shutdowns across the country.“This historic legislation is about rebuilding the backbone of this country,” Biden said in brief remarks before signing the landmark legislation.Biden is expected to use his televised speech to hail the stimulus bill known as the American Rescue Plan, which the White House has touted as the biggest progressive spending package in generations that is critical for steering the US towards the end of the pandemic.But Biden is also expected to acknowledge the ongoing pain caused by the pandemic, which has claimed the lives of nearly 530,000 Americans and brought unemployment, hunger and dislocation to tens of millions more. And he is also expected to offer hope, asking for optimism as beleaguered Americans face what comes next.Previewing the speech, Biden said he will outline what his administration plans to do to help guide the US through a huge vaccination program and rebuild shattered lives and businesses in the months ahead. “I’m going to launch the next phase of the Covid response,” the Democrat said on Wednesday.“There is light at the end of this dark tunnel of the past year. But we cannot let our guard down now or assume the victory is inevitable. Together, we’re going to get through this pandemic and usher in a healthier and more hopeful future.”A White House official said the speech will last less than 20 minutes and will note how controlling the pandemic and administering vaccines has been the “greatest operational challenge the country has faced”. So far, more than 62 million people across the US have been vaccinated. Biden said this week that the US “hit a record of 2.9m vaccinations in one day in America” on Saturday.The speech is resonant in its timing, coming a year to the day since the World Health Organization declared the spread of the coronavirus a pandemic. It’s also a year to the night since Donald Trump, the former president, delivered a similar televised address on the pandemic that came after he repeatedly claimed the virus would somehow disappear on its own.One year ago the pandemic became tangible for most Americans, with many companies telling staff to work from home, if they were able to, sporting bodies such as the NBA canceling games and Broadway shows shuttering in New York City.The period since has seen waves of the virus surge across the country, with the deficient response of several states and the Trump administration seeing healthcare systems pushed close to collapse and millions of frontline workers, particularly people of color, suffer the brunt of the pandemic. At the height of the pandemic, more than 14% of working Americans were out of a job.Biden has sought to instill optimism over the course of the pandemic since becoming president, with the rate of new infections and hospitalizations now starting to fall. His administration has set a goal of 100m vaccine shots in the first 100 days, something the president was upbeat over in a visit to a Washington DC hospital this week.“We’re really warping the speed now,” Biden said. “We’re doing pretty good across the country. We’re going to hit 100m soon.”Life remains upended for millions of Americans, however. The stimulus package is the first major legislative victory of Biden’s presidency and promises to raise millions of Americans out of poverty. It includes $1,400 payments for eligible individuals along with hundreds of billions of dollars more to bolster vaccine distribution, extended unemployment assistance and child tax credits. No Republicans in Congress voted for the bill, claiming it was bloated and unnecessary, but Biden, a Democrat, appears to have strong public support for the measures. Polling has shown a clear majority of American voters support the Covid aid package and approve generally of the way the president has handled the coronavirus crisis since taking office.Challenges still remain in delivering vaccines, however, as well as the actions of several states, such as Texas, that have started to ease restrictions such as mask mandates. More than 18m doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccine will be shipped to states, tribes and territories this week, the White House said, with another 100m additional doses of the single-shot Johnson & Johnson vaccine set to be delivered later this year.Biden has previously said there will be enough vaccine for all American adults by the end of May. There is still no plan for the vaccination of children, although the president is also hoping to push forward the reopening of schools.The Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) has new guidelines that allow the gathering of fully vaccinated people with vaccinated grandparents or friends without masks or socially distancing, but there is still no indication when it will be safe for people to travel again or for life more broadly to return to normality.“There are a lot of folks who are older, people with chronic diseases,” Ashish Jha, dean of the Brown University School of Public Health, told ABC. “Let them get vaccinated and I think it will happen in the next month or so then we can begin to relax these restrictions and get our lives back.” More

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      in US Politics

      'It’s every man for himself': the Texans defying end of mask mandate

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      The parking lot was packed at The Shops at La Cantera, a partially outdoor mall in north-west San Antonio, on the day that Texas officially ended mandatory mask wearing. But it was clear not everyone was ready to embrace the change, with most people who wandered in and out of stores still donning face coverings, and many shops requiring customers to wear one before entering.Governor Greg Abbott announced an end to the statewide mask mandate he issued over the summer on 2 March, and on Wednesday, the new rules took effect. This means that not only are Texans no longer required to wear a mask, but stores, restaurants, and even bars are fully open at maximum capacity despite the fact that only 16% of adults in the state are fully vaccinated.But a few businesses at the mall – including Macy’s, Victoria’s Secret, and L’Occitane en Provence – took it upon themselves to defy the new rules, posting signs informing customers that their policies are not in line with those of the state government. One reads: “Your mask must cover your nose and mouth at all times. No food or drink allowed.” Another says: “No mask, no entry. We welcome 4 customers inside at a time. Thank you!”Eryn Louis sat at a table in the outdoor food court across from her sister. Before agreeing to be interviewed, both women ask for a moment to put their face masks on – a clear indication of how they feel about the governor’s new order.“I absolutely hate it,” Louis said, referring to Abbott’s decision to end the statewide mask mandate. “I was at home with my mom when I found out about it. I almost wanted to cry because even though I’m double vaccinated, I’m still high risk since I’m type 1 diabetic. Our grandfather is high risk. My stepdad is high risk.”Louis and her sister said they had already witnessed a non-cooperative customer defy a store’s mask policy.“Today, when we were leaving Target there was a lady who was getting mad because Target is still requiring people to wear masks,” Louis said. “She said, ‘Target is not a Texas corporation. You don’t have to do this.’ And of course she wasn’t wearing a mask when she walked in.”Louis is both a student and a server in a restaurant. While she is completing her classes online, she must be physically present at work where she has been most at risk throughout the pandemic.“We used to [require masks]. Now our sign on the door just says we encourage them. Even last year, my managers cared more about the guest experience than they did about being mask police,” Louis said. Louis said even before the mask mandate was lifted, she and other servers were told not to say anything to customers if they weren’t wearing a mask, since they would just take it off at their tables anyway.“I’ve had one customer come in who was a doctor. He was terrified of sitting by anyone because he’s seen Covid and what it could do.”Ayana Delvalle works at the cash register at the Pottery Barn, one of the many shops in the mall that is still enforcing a mask policy.“Pottery Barn’s policy from the beginning has always been to cover your nose and mouth from the moment you walk into the store until the time you leave,” Delvalle. “Even more so recently, we have incorporated no food or drink inside the store to prevent people from pulling their masks off.”Devalle says she is not yet vaccinated because she is still too nervous.“Getting the vaccination does scare me a little bit just because it’s still a little soon. I just want to wait it out and see how the more of the population reacts to it before I make that decision myself.”However, she says she will continue to wear a mask in public.“For me personally, it’s everyone’s choice but I would hope people would make the right decision as far as other people’s safety and health,” Devalle said.Mahak Ahsan is a student pharmacist in the city. She expressed frustration that the state government is impeding the work she and her colleagues are doing to administer vaccines, and educate people about the benefits of immunizations and wearing masks.“No one has any respect for the healthcare workers. Not even just for us but nurses and doctors – everyone who works so tirelessly. We’re the ones who are around the sick people the most so it’s just a slap in our face,” Ahsan said. “It just really sucks.”Ahsan believes the mask mandate lift is “a very bad idea”.“Majority of Texas hasn’t even been vaccinated. That’s insane,” Ahsan said. “I don’t feel comfortable knowing that so many people out here aren’t vaccinated and are walking around without masks.”Ahsan said she was angry and concerned because while she is fully vaccinated, her parents only just received their first shots this week. She believes vaccines should be available and accessible to everyone now that masks are no longer required.“They did a horrible job of trying to give the [vaccines] to the people who need it the most. You see these teachers still don’t have it,” she said. “At this point, it’s every man for himself. Everyone needs to have gotten it by now.” More

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      Biden pledges surplus vaccines will be shared with the rest of the world – video

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      The US president has pledged surplus vaccines will be shared with the rest of the world, after he announced the purchase of an additional 100m Johnson & Johnson doses. ‘If we have a surplus, we’re going to share it with the rest of the world,’ he said. ‘This is not something that can be stopped by a fence no matter how high you build a fence or a wall. So we’re not going to be safe until the world is safe. And so, we’re going to start off making sure Americans are taken care of first, but we’re then going to try and help the rest of the world.’ The president reiterated plans to have all American adults vaccinated by the end of May and revealed the country hit a record of 2.9m vaccinations in one day on Saturday
      Coronavirus live news: at least 3,000 nurses have died in year since WHO declared Covid pandemic More

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      in Elections

      'Help is on the way': Democrats cheer as US House passes $1.9tn Covid relief plan – video

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      The House of Representatives gave final approval on Wednesday to one of the largest economic stimulus measures in US history, a sweeping $1.9tn Covid-19 relief bill that gives Joe Biden his first major victory in office. The measure provides $400bn for $1,400 direct payments to most Americans, $350bn in aid to state and local governments, an expansion of the child tax credit, and increased funding for vaccine distribution. ‘This is the most consequential legislation that many of us will ever be a party to,’ the House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi, said at a ceremony to sign the bill before it goes to the White House
      US House passes $1.9tn Covid relief plan in major legislative victory for Biden
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      $1,400 checks and vaccine funds: what the US Covid relief bill contains

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      The US House on Wednesday passed the huge $1.9tn coronavirus relief and economic stimulus package that represents Joe Biden’s first major legislative victory.The massive legislation, a broadly popular bill with the public, received no Republican support. It aims to fulfill Democrats’ campaign promise to combat the coronavirus and revive a pummeled economy. It also includes sweeping anti-poverty measures that attempt to tackle deep-seated racial and gender inequalities in the American economy.Here are the main elements of the bill:$1,400 stimulus checks: A majority of Americans – as many as 85% of US households, according to Democrats – will receive direct payments of $1,400 per person. Individuals making less than $75,000 and married couples making less than $150,000 collectively would receive the checks. The payments would gradually decrease for those earning more than those income levels, with the benefit capped at $80,000 for individuals and $160,000 for married couples, who won’t receive checks. The threshold is lower than Biden had initially proposed, and was changed to accommodate objections from moderate Democrats in the Senate.Unemployment benefits: The bill extends through early September the $300-a-week federal unemployment benefits approved in a previous aid package. Biden proposed expanding the supplement to $400 a week through August, but the Senate kept it at $300, while extending the benefit through September. It also included a provision to make the first $10,200 of unemployment benefits received in 2020 tax-free for households earning less than $150,000.Child tax credit: The legislation significantly increases – and expands eligibility for – the child tax credit, a longtime progressive priority that Democrats are hoping to make permanent after the pandemic. Under the bill, the tax credit would jump from $2,000 a child under 17 to $3,600 for children up to age five and $3,000 for children aged between six and 17. Taken together with other benefits, it is estimated the expansion will halve the number of children living in poverty in America.Health insurance subsidies: The bill would temporarily increase financial assistance for health coverage purchased through marketplaces established by the Obama administration’s Affordable Care Act, known as Obamacare. It also aims to help those who are unemployed keep their health coverage, as well as provides additional funding for military veterans’ healthcare and other health programs.Vaccine distribution and testing: The bill provides tens of billions of dollars to speed up vaccine distribution and administration, as well as increase coronavirus testing and enhance contact tracing and genomic sequencing.Pandemic response: The bill sends $350bn to state, local and tribal governments, to help offset deep budget shortfalls as a result of efforts to combat the pandemic. It also includes $130bn to help schools reopen safely by reducing class sizes and modifying classrooms to improve ventilation and social distancing. Colleges and universities would receive $40bn to help cover the cost of pandemic-related expenses. Businesses would also get funding, including under a new program to help bars and restaurants hurt by Covid lockdowns.Rental, mortgage and food assistance: The legislation also includes a number of other provisions that would provide assistance for food and housing, including money for low-income Americans to afford rent and pay their utilities, and aid to homeowners struggling to pay their mortgages because of the pandemic. More

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      in US Politics

      US House poised to approve Joe Biden's $1.9tn Covid relief plan

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      Sign up for the Guardian’s First Thing newsletterThe House of Representatives is poised to give final approval to Joe Biden’s sweeping $1.9tn coronavirus stimulus and relief plan, a giant aid package the president has said is critical for lifting the US out of the pandemic and reviving its battered economy.If passed by the House on Wednesday, as Democratic leaders expect, the first major legislative initiative of Biden’s presidency will rush assistance to families struggling under a year-long public health crisis and provide the most generous expansion of aid to low-income Americans in a generation.It will send direct payments of up to $1,400 to most Americans, expand aid to state, local and tribal governments, provide federal subsidies for those struggling to afford health insurance, housing and food and deliver money to boost Covid-19 vaccine distribution and testing and to safely reopen schools.Economists predict that as one of the largest emergency rescue packages in American history, the American Rescue Plan (ARP) will accelerate economic recovery, boosting growth to levels not seen in recent decades and dramatically reducing numbers living in poverty.According to one estimate, the ARP could cut child poverty by as much as half, through an expansion of a tax credit for families with children that many Democrats want to make permanent.House Democrats, who hold a slim majority, were confident the measure would pass on Wednesday morning, despite changes made in the Senate that threatened to alienate some progressives.The New York congressman Hakeem Jeffries, the House Democratic Caucus chair, said he was “110% confident” of success. Once passed by the House, the bill will be sent to Biden for signature.The Senate passed the bill on Saturday in a 50-49 vote, Democrats overcoming unified Republican opposition and a last-minute objection by Joe Manchin of West Virginia, a member of their own party.The package before the House on Wednesday was narrower than Biden’s initial proposal, which included progressive priorities subsequently either stripped out or scaled back to appease moderates like Manchin, who echoed Republicans with concerns that the infusion of aid was too big in an economy showing signs of revival.A provision to raise the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour was deemed inadmissible under a budget process Democrats used to bypass Republican opposition.The Senate-approved version tightens eligibility for stimulus checks and restructures a proposal for unemployment benefits that Biden hoped to raise to $400 a week. Under the new plan, unemployment benefits will remain at $300 a week but will be extended through the beginning of September, rather than August. The first $10,200 of supplements from 2020 will be made tax-free.Though disappointed with some of the amendments, Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal, chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, called them “relatively minor concessions” and said the overall package remained “truly progressive and bold”.Republicans say the plan is excessive and mismatched to the economic and public health outlook, as more Americans are vaccinated and states move to reopen businesses and schools. They have also revived concerns the package will grow the national debt, worries they set aside under Donald Trump.“We know for sure that it includes provisions that are not targeted, they’re not temporary, they’re not related to Covid and it didn’t have to be this way,” said the Wyoming congresswoman Liz Cheney, House Republican Conference chair. “We could have had a bill that was a fraction of the cost of this one, it could have gotten bipartisan approval and support.”The extraordinary price tag is just shy of the $2.2tn coronavirus relief bill signed into law by Donald Trump at the onset of the pandemic last March. It will be the sixth spending bill Congress has enacted to address the devastation wrought by the twin public health and economic crises, and is poised to be the first to pass without bipartisan support despite Biden’s campaign promise to work with Republicans.Yet the lack of consensus in Washington belies its popularity with voters across the political spectrum and local and state officials of both parties. Encouraged by polling that shows broad public support for the bill, Biden and Democrats have argued that the plan is bipartisan.Final passage of the bill will come a day before Biden is due to deliver his first primetime speech on Thursday, marking the first anniversary after the introduction of sweeping public health measures to try to control the spread of the Covid-19 virus that has killed nearly 525,000 Americans and battered the economy.Although vaccine distribution is ramping up dramatically and the economy is showing some signs of improvement, Democrats say the recovery is precarious and uneven, and that low-income Americans still need help. Millions of Americans remain unemployed with the poorest hit hardest.“This not only gets us to the other side of this crisis, it really starts healing the wounds that have been caused by this crisis,” said Steny Hoyer, the House Democratic majority leader.After Biden signs the bill into law, he and other top officials will continue to promote the plan to the American public, part of a push by the new administration to ensure Democrats receive credit for an economic recovery ahead of the 2022 congressional midterm elections.“We certainly recognize that we can’t just sign a bill,” the White House press secretary, Jen Psaki, told reporters on Tuesday. “We will need to do some work and use our best voices, including the president, the vice-president and others, to communicate to the American people the benefits of this package.”In a departure from his predecessor, Biden’s signature will not appear on the memo line of the stimulus checks sent to Americans, Psaki said. “This is not about him,” she added. “This is about the American people getting relief.” More

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      Nancy Pelosi hails 'historic' Covid relief bill as House prepares to vote

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      The House speaker, Nancy Pelosi, has hailed the massive $1.9tn Covid relief bill as “historic” and “transformative” as the House stood poised to give the legislation final approval with a vote on Wednesday morning.Joe Biden, who will mark a year since the pandemic brought shutdowns across the nation with a primetime speech on Thursday, has said he will sign the bill as soon as it lands on his desk.The House vote on the bill, which includes checks for most American households, comes after the Senate passed a modestly reworked version of the package on Saturday and will clinch Biden’s most significant early legislative achievement.“It’s a remarkable, historic, transformative piece of legislation, which goes a very long way to crushing the virus and solving our economic crisis,” Pelosi said during a press conference with senior Democrats on Tuesday afternoon, who took turns extolling what they said was the historic nature of the legislation and its impact on reducing poverty in America. “I’m so excited, I just can’t hide it,” she added.Several Democratic leaders compared it to the passage of the Affordable Care Act, saying the plan would not only “crush” the virus and the economic fallout but would look forward to tackle longstanding racial and gender inequalities in the economy.Smiling under her mask, Pelosi expressed full confidence that Democrats had the votes to pass the bill.Asked about possible defections from progressive members disappointed that the Senate had narrowed a version of the bill, initially proposed by Biden and passed by the House, Pelosi shook her head and said “no” repeatedly. The bill would head to Biden’s desk after the vote on Wednesday, she said.Besides the fresh round of stimulus checks, the bill also extends emergency jobless benefits to early September, instead of 14 March. It spends huge amounts on Covid-19 vaccines, testing and treatments, while also aiding state and local governments and schools, assisting small businesses and providing major expansions of tax breaks and programs for lower- and middle-income families.Progressives suffered setbacks, especially the Senate’s removal of a gradual minimum wage increase to $15 hourly by 2025. But the measure carries so many Democratic priorities that final passage was not in doubt, despite the party’s narrow 10-vote House majority.Meanwhile a hefty majority of Americans – 70% – say they are in favor of the coronavirus relief package. Only a third of Americans said the legislation is too costly, according to a poll from Pew research.Biden has said he will not be attaching his signature to the $1,400 relief checks that are expected to be mailed soon, a break with his predecessor who last year had “President Donald J Trump” printed on the economic impact payments approved by Congress.The next round of paper checks will bear the signature of a career official at the treasury department’s Bureau of the Fiscal Service, the White House press secretary, Jen Psaki, said at a Tuesday briefing.Psaki said the goal was to get the payments out quickly instead of branding them as coming from Biden.“This is not about him, this is about the American people getting relief,” Psaki said. More