Former acting White House chief of staff Mick Mulvaney argues Democrats will fail to reach a bipartisan compromise with Republicans and force their own COVID-19 relief plan through.<\/p>\n
Congressional Democrats are barreling ahead on passing a sprawling coronavirus relief plan without any Republican support, likely ensuring that most Americans will receive a third stimulus check.<\/p>\n
Continue Reading Below<\/p>\n
But even if you qualified for the first two payments the government distributed in 2020 and at the beginning of 2021, it's possible that you won't receive the $1,400 check.<\/p>\n
Although President Biden has maintained that that nearly $2 trillion emergency aid package needs to include direct payments worth $1,400, he's indicated that he's open to narrowing eligibility for the money in hopes of securing some GOP support.<\/p>\n
BIDEN SPARKS BACKLASH AMONG SOME PROGRESSIVES OVER $1,400 STIMULUS CHECKS IN COVID RELIEF PROPOSAL<\/strong><\/p>\n "Further targeting means not the size of the check, it means the income level of people who receive the check," White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters during a briefing on Wednesday. "That's something that is under discussion."<\/p>\n One proposal floated by senior Democrats includes lowering the threshold for the payments to begin phasing out above $50,000 for single taxpayers, $75,000 for people who file as the heads of households, and $100,000 for married couples, according to The Washington Post.<\/p>\n Still, Psaki suggested Tuesday during a press briefing that Biden is wary of reducing the income threshold too dramatically. For instance, she said, he believes a nurse and teacher jointly earning $120,000 a year "should still get a check" — something that Biden reiterated while meeting with White House aides.<\/p>\n “That is in his plan,” Psaki said. “People need to get the relief they need.”<\/p>\n WHAT'S IN BIDEN'S $1.9T STIMULUS PLAN?<\/strong><\/p>\n If the relief plan followed a formula in House-passed legislation last year, the $1,400 checks would taper off for individuals who earn $75,000 more a year and families making $150,000 or more. But the phaseout level increases for families with more children, meaning that a family with multiple children earning more than $300,000 a year could theoretically receive some money, even if they have not suffered a financial setback during the pandemic.<\/p>\n New research published by Opportunity Insights, a nonpartisan policy institute based at Harvard University, laid out evidence that the money would be most effective at boosting the U.S. economy if it targeted lower-income Americans.<\/p>\n The economists found that when the government sent out $600 checks as part of the $900 billion relief package Congress approved in December, spending among households making less than $46,000 rose 7.9% from Jan. 6 to Jan. 19 compared to the year-ago period.<\/p>\n By comparison, spending inched up just 0.2% for households making more than $78,000.<\/p>\n "Targeting the next round of stimulus payments toward lower-income households would save substantial resources that could be used to support other programs, with minimal impact on economic activity," the researchers wrote.<\/p>\n