Joe Biden to sign $1.9 trillion stimulus bill and urge vigilance
WASHINGTON – President Joe Biden will sign his $1.9 trillion stimulus bill into law ahead of an evening speech, on Thursday. He is set to mark the first anniversary of the U.S. coronavirus pandemic lockdown, commemorating losses while expressing hope for the future in the speech.
The signing of the legislation called the American Rescue Plan by Biden was initially scheduled for Friday. The final congressional approval to the measure was given by the Democratic-led U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday, handing Biden a major victory in the early months of his presidency.
As an expansion of the child tax credit and increased funding for COVID-19 vaccine distribution, the package provides $400 billion for $1,400 direct payments to most Americans, $350 billion in aid to state and local governments. Biden will sign it in the Oval Office at 1:30 p.m. EST (1830 GMT), the White House said.
Joe Biden campaigned on a promise to curb the pandemic more effectively than Donald Trump and has told Americans since his January inauguration that more deaths and pain were coming from COVID-19.
Biden is expressing fresh hope as the vaccinated population is slowly increasing but he also urged people to continue to be cautious so as to prevent further flare-ups.
Around 10% of Americans have been fully vaccinated and roughly about 530,000 people have died from COVID-19 in the United States. On Wednesday, Biden said he would discuss “what we’ve been through as a nation this past year.”
“But more importantly, I’m going to talk about what comes next. I’m going to launch the next phase of the COVID response and explain what we will do as a government and what we will ask of the American people,” Biden said.
The president is expected to warn Americans to be cautious. Biden has urged people to continue wearing masks, maintain social distancing and good hygiene, and he has discouraged cities and states from loosening their guidelines on large gatherings even as more localities relax restrictions.
