President Joe Biden delivered his first speech to a joint session of Congress on Wednesday night amid the coronavirus pandemic. Did the 46th president mention anything about another stimulus check payment?
What President Biden said
President Biden talked about the economy and the need to create more jobs in the United States during his speech. He laid out a mostly progressive plan for the future of the country, saying workers need to anticipate artificial intelligence and changes to the workplace.
- Biden also talked about the need to tax wealthy Americans and not the middle class. He specifically mentioned not charging middle-class Americans any more money as they looked to make changes to the health care system.
- However, Biden did not hint at another stimulus check. He did talk about the American Families Plan and the American Jobs Act — both of which could provide relief for Americans — but there was no specific mention of another stimulus check.
Questions about a fourth stimulus check
Per USA Today, there was some suspicion Biden would hint at a fourth stimulus check in his speech Wednesday night. Americans would be watching the speech to see if there was any hint another check could hit their bank accounts.
- “Labor market and tax experts, however, don’t anticipate that there will be additional stimulus checks in the next relief package as the economy continues to recover from last year’s coronavirus-induced recession and the job market improves,” according to USA Today.
A report from the Economic Security Project said a fourth or fifth stimulus check could keep 12 million people out over poverty.
- Stimulus checks “have played a critical role in fighting poverty, boosting small business revenue, and increasing state and local revenues,” according to Business Insider.
- “Evidence from the last year shows stimulus checks to be the fastest and most impactful investments helping Americans get through this crisis, lifting more people out of poverty than any other single policy,” the report said.