Biden urged to push back against Republicans’ scaled-down Covid relief proposal – live | US news

Conor Lamb, a centrist House Democrat from Pennsylvania, criticized Senate Republicans’ coronavirus relief proposal in a new Twitter thread.

Lamb said the Republicans’ $600 billion plan was “just not good enough” for working families who have financially suffered because of the pandemic.

“The cuts in the GOP Senators’ plan come from those same people who make around $60K or have lost jobs,” Lamb said.

“The GOP takes from them after giving to big companies all year. You can’t cover that up with unity or bipartisanship. It’s just not good enough.”

Joe Biden will meet with the Republican senators who crafted the $600 billion plan in about two hours. The president has called for spending $1.9 trillion on the next relief package.

Marjorie Taylor Greene said she would “soon” meet with Donald Trump, as the QAnon-supporting congresswoman faces calls to resign from the House.

The Georgia lawmaker said she had a call with Trump last week, claiming the former president offered her his support. (Trump’s team has not confirmed the call.)

“He’s doing really well,” Greene told the conservative outlet One America News in an interview today.

“I’m excited to go visit him soon and continue to give him a call and talk to him frequently. Great news is, he supports me 100 percent, and I’ve always supported him. President Trump is always here for the people, and he’s not going anywhere. So I look forward to, to joining him and what his future plans may be.”

Trump has been staying at his Florida resort Mar-a-Lago since he left office last month.

Ron Wyden, the incoming Democratic chairman of the Senate finance committee, released a statement criticizing Republican senators’ coronavirus relief proposal.

Wyden, a Democrat of Oregon, argued the proposal was “far too small to provide the relief the American people need” amid the pandemic.

“In particular, a three-month extension of jobless benefits is a non-starter,” Wyden said. “Workers who have lost their jobs through no fault of their own shouldn’t be constantly worrying that they are going to lose their income overnight. An extension of benefits for at least six months is essential.”

Joe Biden will meet with the Senate Republicans who crafted the $600 billion proposal at the White House in about three hours.

The White House press briefing has now concluded. Here’s where the day stands so far:

• Joe Biden will meet with a group of Republican senators today to discuss the coronavirus relief package. The Republican senators have proposed a $600 billion package, which is more than $1 trillion less than what Biden has called for spending. Democrats have urged Biden to stand firm in the meeting, and Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, said the president is more concerned that the legislation will be too small rather than too large.
• Biden threatened to issue sanctions against Myanmar over the country’s military coup. “The United States removed sanctions on Burma over the past decade based on progress toward democracy. The reversal of that progress will necessitate an immediate review of our sanction laws and authorities, followed by appropriate action,” the president said in a statement. “The United States will stand up for democracy wherever it is under attack.”
• The Pentagon and the department of health and human services are working to expand access to at-home coronavirus tests. HHS is giving $230 million to the health care company Ellume to produce more of the tests, which are available over the counter and provide results within 15 minutes. The at-home tests have a 95% accuracy rate.

The blog will have more coming up, so stay tuned.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki said a decision has not yet been reached about revoking Donald Trump’s access to post-presidency intelligence briefings.

A reporter asked Psaki whether she believed Trump’s lack of access to Twitter had made it easier for the White House to negotiate with Republican lawmakers.

“We don’t spend a lot of time thinking about President Trump here,” Psaki replied. She added, “I can’t say we miss him on Twitter.”

A reporter asked Jen Psaki why Joe Biden was not being as “tactically ruthless” as Mitch McConnell was when Republicans held the Senate majority.

“President Biden ran on a commitment of, of course, unifying the country but also of caring from all sides,” the White House press secretary replied.

Although Democrats control both chambers of Congress, Biden is scheduled to meet with a group of 10 Senate Republicans to discuss the coronavirus relief package today.

Jen Psaki was asked about the White House’s communication with Senator Joe Manchin after Kamala Harris did an interview for a local West Virginia station to pitch Joe Biden’s coronavirus relief proposal.

“We’ve been in touch with Senator Manchin,” the White House press secretary said.

Manchin, who has signaled he is skeptical about aspects of Biden’s $1.9 trillion proposal, expressed frustration about the vice-president’s interview.

“No one called me,” Manchin said of the interview. “We’re going to try to find a bipartisan pathway forward, but we need to work together. That’s not a way of working together.”

Jen Psaki received more questions about the GameStop controversy that has caused severe stock market volatility in the US.

“The SEC is looking carefully at recent activities,” Psaki said, referring to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The press secretary said the controversy had raised an “important set of policy issues,” and she argued it was appropriate for Congress to review those issues.

Joe Biden has released a statement threatening to sanction Myanmar over the country’s military coup.

“The military’s seizure of power in Burma, the detention of Aung San Suu Kyi and other civilian officials, and the declaration of a national state of emergency are a direct assault on the country’s transition to democracy and the rule of law,” the US president said in the statement.

“The United States removed sanctions on Burma over the past decade based on progress toward democracy. The reversal of that progress will necessitate an immediate review of our sanction laws and authorities, followed by appropriate action,” Biden added. “The United States will stand up for democracy wherever it is under attack.”

Moments ago, Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, was asked by a reporter whether the statement was meant as a message to China, who has refused to condemn the coup.

“I think it’s a message to all countries in the region,” Psaki said.

Jen Psaki indicated that it was not likely a final deal would emerge out of Joe Biden’s meeting with Republican senators later today.

“What this meeting is not is a forum for the president to make or accept an offer,” the White House press secretary said.

Some Democratic lawmakers have urged Biden to stand firm in the meeting, rather than agreeing to a smaller relief package to attract Republican support for it.

Jen Psaki said Joe Biden is more concerned that the coronavirus relief package will be too small rather than too large.

A reporters asked the White House press secretary whether Biden was more focused on the relief deal being large or bipartisan because it seems like it won’t be both.

“I think the president believes we can” do both, Psaki said.

Joe Biden’s press secretary, Jen Psaki, is now holding a briefing at the White House.

Psaki previewed the president’s meeting later today with 10 Republican senators who have proposed a smaller coronavirus relief package.

Psaki said the meeting demonstrated the Biden administration’s “close and ongoing engagement with members of both parties”.

The press secretary underscored “the need to move swiftly” to address the health and economic crises facing this nation.

She also read out quotes from some Republican leaders, including West Virginia Governor Jim Justice, calling on lawmakers to go big with the next relief package.

“The size of the package was designed with the size of the crisis,” Psaki said.

The Congressional Budget Office has released a report saying the US gross domestic product will reach its pre-pandemic level by the middle of this year.

The CBO projected that GDP would grow by 1.7% annually from 2020 to 2024, an increase of 0.7% from the agency’s July projection.

The CBO said the December stimulus played into the forecast improvement. The country’s economic outlook is also rosier “in large part because the downturn was not as severe as expected and because the first stage of the recovery took place sooner and was stronger than expected”.

But the agency also said it expected the US unemployment rate would not return to its pre-pandemic level until 2024.

That distinction could fuel arguments from some Democrats, including Joe Biden, that the country is experiencing a “K-shaped recovery,” meaning the wealthy are getting wealthier as the lowest-income Americans continue to suffer because of the pandemic.

The CBO’s report comes hours before a group of Senate Republicans are scheduled to meet with Biden at the White House to discuss the next coronavirus relief package.