It’s common practice for politicians to make grand promises to the electorate in hopes of receiving their votes. Many of these promises may be well intentioned, but depending on the political climate and many other factors, delivering can be very difficult. It’s even more difficult if a president only serves one term. Nonetheless, if a president can accomplish one big goal that impacts the country positively, then that should be celebrated.

The current president of the United States’ grand ambition is The Build Back Better Plan. The Build Back Better Plan is a spending plan that aims to address infrastructure, the COVID-19 impact, social programs, and the positioning of the U.S. economy as a leader in the world economic market. The president’s vision will address many areas of American society that have been neglected for a while. America is lagging behind in infrastructure, energy, and social programs when compared to other wealthy countries. We know that an elected official with good ideas and intentions is not enough, but they must have the ability to get others on board and pass laws.

There are three parts to the president’s Build Back Better Agenda: The American Rescue Plan, The American Jobs Plan, and The American Families Plan. Each of these plans has legislation associated with it with the aim of  accomplishing President Biden’s vision of America. If we look closer at each part of the agenda, we can see who may benefit from them.

THE AMERICAN RESCUE PLAN

The American Rescue Plan is what we know now as the Covid-19 stimulus package bill that was passed in March 2021. The package is a $1.9 trillion spending plan that covers all aspects of American lives that are affected by Covid-19. The bill extended unemployment from March 2021 to September 2021 with a $300 weekly supplement. Tax breaks and credits are included for those that may owe higher taxes in 2022. The bill also provided a $1400 deposit to every individual that met the required income level. Due to the fact that many Americans were unable to work due to lockdowns, relief was provided for housing, increased food stamp payments, and small business grants.

The current administration has a goal to have the majority of Americans vaccinated as soon as possible. The bill includes money for Covid testing, vaccine distribution, and contact tracing. The first part of The Build Back Better Plan mainly focuses on addressing the impact of Covid-19 on the U.S. economy and trying to provide vaccines for Americans.

THE AMERICAN JOBS PLAN

The second part of the Build Back Better Agenda is The American Jobs Plan. The American Jobs Plan is a plan to spend money on infrastructure, job creation, research and development, and care for senior citizens. The bill has been modified several times, with the original being $2.3 trillion. It is now down to $1 trillion due to negotiation within the Democratic Party.

The bill set aside money for transportation infrastructure such as highways, roads, railways, airports, and ports. It also set aside money for electric vehicles’ charging stations and upgrading the energy grid system. Along with transportation infrastructure, there are plans to improve home infrastructure. The plan would set aside money to improve public housing, the wastewater system, and broadband internet.

THE AMERICAN FAMILIES PLAN

The third portion of The Build Back Better Agenda is The American Families Plan. This portion of the plan would set aside money for many aspects of American families’ lives. There would be an adjustment to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and also an extension of the child tax credit. Money would be set aside for paid family and medical leave, healthcare, education, and child care. The bill that would make all of this possible has been modified several times and is currently being voted on.

CHALLENGES

As of recently, only the first portion of The Build Back Better Plan has been enacted in the form of The American Rescue Plan, but it was not without its challenges. One of the arguments presented by the opposition was that another stimulus package would be unnecessary because the economy was in recovery. The Peter G. Peterson Foundation website provided information on what the government had done in response to the coronavirus during the previous administration. During the Trump administration, five bills were passed, totaling $3.5 trillion, to combat the impact of the coronavirus.

The second portion of The Build Back Better Plan, which is The American Jobs Plan, was put on hold contingent on the bill associated with The American Families Plan being passed. The Democratic Party is using a political process called reconciliation that will allow them to pass The American Families Plan without the support of the Republican Party. This still provides some challenges because not all Democrats are on board with the bill as it is. Which leads to more modification of the bill, but progress is being made for an agreement. 

FINAL THOUGHT

The Build Back Better Plan is an ambitious plan that will affect all aspects of American lives. Many people have already benefited from The American Rescue Plan in the form of direct payments and tax credits. There is no denying that the country’s infrastructure is in dire need of upgrading and modernizing, and many would argue that it is due time that the government focus on the working class when providing aid and subsidies. An important question is raised by the opposition to President Biden’s agenda: how are we going to pay for it? 

The current administration argues that the bill will pay for itself in increased productivity. The administration also plans to make adjustments to the tax code by raising taxes on the wealthy and improving the IRS’s capabilities to collect taxes. This is an uphill battle because taxes are a controversial topic in American politics.

Only the future can tell if President Biden will be able to put forth all aspects of The Build Back Better Plan, and will it be better for America in the long run?