‘The Jobs Report Is a Pandemic Report,’ Biden Says

“In many ways, the jobs report is a pandemic report. With the pandemic raging, people are losing work and losing hope. And they’re left staring at the ceiling, so many, unable to sleep, worried will they have their health insurance, wondering if they’ll be OK. The bottom line is the job report shows we need to provide more immediate relief for working families and businesses now. The bipartisan Covid relief package passed in December was a very important step but just a down payment. Next week, I’ll be here with you all laying out the groundwork for the next Covid economic relief package that meets the critical moment. Vaccines give us hope. But the rollout has been a travesty. This would be the greatest operational challenge, the greatest operational challenge we will ever face as a nation. We’re going to need billions of dollars to get the vaccines from a vial into someone’s arm, the vaccination for millions of Americans. We’re also going to need tens of millions to help reopen our schools and reopen them safely. State, local, tribal communities need tens of billions of dollars to keep educators, police officers, firefighters and other first responders and public health workers on the job. We need more direct relief flowing to families, small businesses, including finishing the job of getting people that $2,000 in relief, direct payment. $600 is simply not enough when you have to choose between paying rent, putting food on the table, keeping the lights on.”