More than two-thirds of Americans support core elements of President Joe Biden's coronavirus relief package, including stimulus checks and a minimum wage increase, despite support among lawmakers split down party lines.
In a poll released by Yahoo News on Monday, responses indicated a majority of Americans favor Biden's plans to provide pandemic relief, with the two most popular elements being a $1,400 top-up to stimulus payments and increased federal funding for vaccinations. 58% of the survey participants also supported increasing the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour, a point that is among the most contentious provisions of the president's proposal in Congress.
White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain tweeted about the survey results on Tuesday and said that Biden's agenda is bipartisan, given that the majority of the respondents favored the proposals.
—Ronald Klain (@WHCOS) February 2, 2021
However, Biden's plan is facing a partisan path. On Monday, a group of 10 Republican senators met with the president to discuss their counter-proposal, which is projected to cost $618 billion - a third of the cost of Biden's $2 trillion pan. The counter-proposal did not include a minimum wage increase and suggested $1,000 stimulus checks.
Biden and his administration have already indicated that they will not cut down elements of the stimulus plan just to get a bill passed, and with Democrats filing a joint resolution on Monday to get Biden's aid package passed through budget reconciliation, bipartisanship will be unlikely.
"Congress has a responsibility to quickly deliver immediate comprehensive relief to the American people hurting from COVID-19," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said in a joint statement. "The cost of inaction is high and growing, and the time for decisive action is now."
