To support the economy, the White House and Mitch McConnell have proposed sending every American a $1,200 check...
...Unless you're poor or unemployed, in which case you might get half that or potentially nothing at all. That has to change. 1/12
washingtonpost.com/business/2020/…
...Unless you're poor or unemployed, in which case you might get half that or potentially nothing at all. That has to change. 1/12
washingtonpost.com/business/2020/…
Means-testing emergency relief will leave out the poorest fifth of households. That is bad policy in normal times, but would be an inexcusable moral tragedy in a crisis like this. 2/12
As @DavidAFrench put it, "Universal relief is an act of social solidarity from the government to the citizens when the government is demanding social solidarity from us." 3/12
Preliminary estimates from @iteptweets find that households in the bottom 20% would receive an average benefit of $750 under the @SenateGop's relief proposal, while relief for upper-income households would average over $1900. 4/12
Nearly half of the $215 billion in relief would go to the top 40% of households. This is backwards. 5/12
Many Senate Republicans seem to agree—
@SenatorRomney: "We need to fix this to ensure lower earners get equal payments."
@HawleyMO: "Relief to families in this emergency shouldn’t be regressive." 6/12
@SenatorRomney: "We need to fix this to ensure lower earners get equal payments."
@HawleyMO: "Relief to families in this emergency shouldn’t be regressive." 6/12
Democrats and Republicans have both pushed back against means-tested emergency relief. As @hamandcheese/@Robert_t_Orr argued this week, their voices combined may make the difference. 7/12
niskanencenter.org/major-fiscal-r…
niskanencenter.org/major-fiscal-r…
To get money out the door quickly, it's also vital that @USTreasury make it as easy as possible for those with sparse tax records — college students, seniors, the poor — to apply for relief and update their information with the IRS. 8/12
The IRS can send out rebates quickly—if they have you on record. That's not always the case for the lowest income households. 9/12
That's why direct payments need to be complemented with a temporary increase in SNAP benefits, as @SenateDems have asked for.
EBT cards can be topped-up virtually overnight. 10/12
vox.com/2020/3/17/2118…
EBT cards can be topped-up virtually overnight. 10/12
vox.com/2020/3/17/2118…
To be sure, direct cash payments to every American will not cure #Covid19, nor solve all its economic consequences. 11/12
But they will help to prevent the economy from entering a downward spiral, and ensure every adult and child in America has the resources they need to weather this storm.
Lets get it done. 12/12 niskanencenter.org/major-fiscal-r…
Lets get it done. 12/12 niskanencenter.org/major-fiscal-r…
