July 12, 2020

Joe Biden unveils 'Build Back Better' economic relief plan

Presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden unveiled a plan Thursday designed to revive the U.S. economy with a "Buy American" approach that casts a nod to working-class voters.

Biden released the $700 billion jobs plan, titled "Build Back Better," during a tour of a metalworks plant in Dunsmore, Pa.

"Make no mistake: America has been knocked down.The unemployment rate is higher than it was in the Great Recession. Millions have lost jobs, hours, pay, healthcare, or the small business they started, through no fault of their own," the plan states.

Biden's plan calls for the federal government to promote the United States' manufacturing base and create a $400 billion procurement initiative to spur demand for American products and services.

The plan also calls for investing $300 billion in research and breakthrough technologies, half of which is dedicated to Biden's clean-energy initiatives.

It also lists three main points for providing immediate relief -- supplying local governments with critical aid, extending unemployment insurance and establishing a "comeback package" for businesses and entrepreneurs.

"And, Biden will immediately put people to work by enlisting them to help fight the pandemic, including through a Public Health Jobs Corps."

An outline released by Biden's campaign also reiterates the former vice president's promises to solidify collective bargaining rights for American workers and repeal Republican tax breaks for companies that send jobs overseas.

"The pandemic has also laid bare some unacceptable truths. Even before COVID-19, the Trump administration was pursuing economic policies that rewarded wealth over work and corporations over working families," the plan states.

The campaign said it will pay for the plan by reversing some of President Donald Trump's tax cuts for large corporations and impose "common-sense tax reform that finally makes sure the wealthiest Americans pay their fair share."

"[It] starts with a real strategy to deal with the pandemic," the plan says. "We can't solve the jobs crisis until we solve the public health crisis. Trump may have forgotten about COVID, but COVID hasn't forgotten about us."

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