Washington – White House senior adviser Cedric Richmond said on Sunday that President Biden is willing to sit down with a group of Republican senators who requesting a meeting with the president to discuss an emergency response bill on the coronavirus.
“The president said in his inauguration address that he wanted to work with both sides to help the American people,” Richmond said in an interview with Face the Nation. What we know about President Biden is that it’s never about him, it’s always about the people. So yes, he is very willing to meet with anyone to move the agenda forward. “
A group of 10 Republican senators sent a letter to Mr. Biden on Sunday asking to meet him to discuss a bipartisan coronavirus framework, details of which they expect to reveal Monday. The plan, senators said, includes $ 160 billion for vaccine development and distribution, testing and contact tracking, and manufacturing of personal protective equipment. It also includes $ 4 billion for behavioral health and substance abuse services, as well as targeted economic assistance to unemployed Americans and a new round of direct payments to individuals bringing in $ 50,000 annually.
The president has brought forward his a $ 1.9 trillion large-scale aid package, which is the White House’s highest legislative priority. But now that the Senate is evenly split between the parties, 10 Republicans should join Democrats to support the move to keep the regular legislative process going. Are GOP senators balking at the expense of of Mr. Biden’s plan, as well as the inclusion of provisions such as a federal minimum wage hike up to $ 15 an hour.
Democratic leaders in Congress this week are taking the first steps to carry out a maneuver called “ budget reconciliation ” that will allow Mr. Biden’s plan to be passed without Republican backing.
Richmond said the president’s proposal includes amenities most Americans support, including $ 1,400 direct payments to individuals, aid to small businesses, and money to reopen schools.
“This is about the seriousness of the purpose, this is about meeting the moment, and this crisis is huge and our response to it is up to that challenge,” he said. “If you start talking about $ 1,400 to individuals, another $ 160 million so we can safely open schools, a few hundred million dollars to make sure we help small businesses that are struggling, that’s what the American people want. see.”
Richmond wouldn’t say whether Mr. Biden would be willing to drop measures from his package, such as an increase in the minimum wage, and hold stand-alone votes on those provisions, saying “we’re not going to negotiate on TV.” But he noted that the federal minimum wage has been raised during past crises under both Republican and Democratic governments.
“Other people want to discuss the process. We want to discuss the goal of moving this country forward,” he said. “And President Biden is very clear, and he said it in his inaugural address: we are facing great challenges and we are heading for the moment and we will not leave anyone behind.”
Before joining the White House, Richmond served as a Louisiana congressman and was one of the lawmakers at the Capitol on Jan. 6 during the violent riot by a pro-Trump mob. In the wake of the attack on the Capitol, lawmakers have been given the green light to use their congressional fees for additional security measures. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Thursday that “the enemy is in the House of Representatives,” a reference to some Republicans who have expressed a desire or attempted to bring weapons to the floor of the House.
Reflecting on his time in Congress, Richmond said he believes the political landscape has changed.
“I believe we are in a different state than ever before, members who don’t want to face reality, members who encourage conspiracy theories and things like that,” he said. “But the real, the enemy that’s inside is the dysfunction of the Republican Party, unwilling to face the facts, unwilling to put the people of America first.”
Richmond said the challenge facing Congress is “bringing people together.”
“That means Republicans will drop the division that defined them under the former president over the years and come to the table,” he said. “All we ask is those people who break their backs to keep food on their table and a roof over their heads and clothes on the back of their children, come with us and help them. Stop arguing about electoral fraud. that we know never existed. And so the inner enemy is people’s inability to recognize facts and come together to help the American people. “