The propaganda campaign is in high gear on behalf of Joe Biden and the Democratic Party. We have been told by Democratic politicians and the media that the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan Act will “cut child poverty in half.” If only that were so.
The $1,400 per child stimulus payment will certainly help distressed families across the country. The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC), a boon to the working poor, has been expanded to include childless workers. Likewise, an additional $300 per week to the unemployed, and an increased Child Tax Credit of $3,000 per child will bring relief to millions. But these one-time solutions are a far cry from cutting child poverty in half, as the Democrats spin machine would have us believe.
No one should be fooled into thinking that the American Rescue Plan is an adequate solution to high rates of poverty. These measures are temporary, lasting for just one year. The unemployment supplement ends in September, as does the increase in SNAP food assistance benefits. The small stimulus payments are a far cry from other nations that have replaced income lost during the COVID-19 pandemic. Unless these measures become permanent policy the help is literally of limited benefit.
-- Margaret Kimberley, "Freedom Rider: Ending Poverty in the United States" (BLACK AGENDA REPORT).