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Tag: infrastructure

  • President Joe Biden Unveils Infrastructure Reform Proposal

    President Joe Biden Unveils Infrastructure Reform Proposal

    President Joe Biden unveiled a more than $2 trillion infrastructure package on March 31 as his administration shifts its focus to bolstering the post-pandemic economy. The plan President Biden outlined includes roughly $2 trillion in spending over eight years and would raise the corporate tax rate to 28% to fund it. Speaking at a union hall in Pittsburgh, the President called it a vision to create “the strongest, most resilient, innovative economy in the world” — and millions of “good-paying jobs” along the way. The White House said the tax hike, combined with measures designed to stop offshoring of profits, would fund the infrastructure plan within 15 years.

    The announcement kicks off President Joe Biden’s second major initiative after the passage of a $1.9 trillion Coronavirus relief plan earlier this month. In the new move, the administration aims to approve a first proposal designed to create jobs, revamp US infrastructure, and fight climate change before it turns toward a second plan to improve education and expand paid leave and health-care coverage. President Biden said he will unveil the second part of his recovery package “in a few weeks.” “These are investments we have to make,” Biden said of revamping US infrastructure. “We can afford to make them. To put it another way, we can’t afford not to.”

    While Democrats narrowly control both chambers of Congress (with ultra-conservative Democratic Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia being the deciding vote), the party faces challenges in passing the infrastructure plan. The Republican Party broadly supports efforts to rebuild roads, bridges, and airports and expand broadband access, but Republicans oppose tax hikes as part of the process. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, said that he is “not likely” to support the proposal because of the tax increases. McConnell’s Democratic counterpart, Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of New York, touted the bill as a means to create jobs while promoting clean energy and transportation. In a statement issued on March 31, he said, “I look forward to working with President Biden to pass a big, bold plan that will drive America forward for decades to come.” 

    President Joe Biden responded to criticism of proposed tax hikes, saying he would not increase the burden on anyone making less than $400,000 per year. He said he did not aim to punish the wealthy. “This is not to target those who’ve made it. Not to seek retribution,” President Biden said. “This is about opening opportunities for everybody else.” Among the administration’s goals, it aims to revamp 20,000 miles of roads and highways and repair 10,000 bridges. The proposal calls to build a national network of 500,000 electric vehicle chargers by 2030 and replace 50,000 diesel public transit vehicles. The administration hopes to build or rehabilitate 500,000 homes for low- and middle-income Americans and replace all lead pipes in drinking-water systems. The plan also aims to deliver universal, affordable broadband service. 

    President Joe Biden plans to fund the spending by raising the corporate tax rate to 28%. Republicans slashed the tax to 21% from 35% as part of their 2017 tax law. President Biden also wants to boost the global minimum tax for multinational corporations and ensure they pay at least 21% in taxes in any country. The White House aims to discourage firms from listing tax havens as their address and writing off expenses related to offshoring, among other reforms. Biden hopes the package will create manufacturing jobs and rescue failing American infrastructure as the country tries to emerge from the shadow of the Coronavirus pandemic. He and congressional Democrats also plan to combat climate change and start a transition to cleaner energy sources.

    President Joe Biden has said he hopes to win Republican support for an infrastructure bill. If Democrats cannot get 10 Republican senators on board, they will have to pass the bill through budget reconciliation, which would not require any Republicans to back the plan in a chamber split 50-50 by party. Biden said he would hear out GOP ideas on infrastructure. “We’ll have a good-faith negotiation with any Republican who wants to help get this done,” Biden said on March 31. “But we have to get it done.”

  • OurWeek In Politics (12/24-12/30/17)

    Here are the main events in Politics that occurred this week:

    1. Major Protests Break Out in Iran

    Anti-government protests in Iran broke out this week in response to issues such as political repression, poor economic conditions, and the lack of promised political reform.

    On December 28, a series of protest broke out in several Iranian cities in response to the poor economic situation within the country (which has only gotten worse since the imposition of new sanctions on Iran by the Trump Administration). Despite the initial focus of the protests on solely economic issues, they soon morphed into a wider expression of dissatisfaction with the current status-quo within the country. The demands of the protesters have varied from simply asking for reforms within the current political structure of Iran, to regime change and the reinstallation of the Pahlavi Monarchy into power. Thus far, the Iranian government has had a mixed reaction to the protests. For example, President Hassan Rouhani urged the government to more adequately address the demands of the Iranian citizens, but urged against violence and rage against the system, noting that such actions will only inflame the situation within the country and reduce the chances for any changes to the governmental system. Additionally, the Iranian government has shut down internet access and access to social media sources such as Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook for fear that such venues will increase the spread of the protests.

    The international community has had a somewhat mixed reaction to the protests in Iran. Countries such as Israel, Canada, Germany, Saudi Arabia, and the UK have all expressed solidarity with the protestors and cautioned the Iranian government against using excessive force to suppress the protests. Additionally, US President Donald Trump has used the protests as another opportunity to critique the Iranian government and call for the overthrow of the current Iranian government. In a Twitter message on December 30, Trump declared that “Many reports of peaceful protests by Iranian citizens fed up with regime’s corruption & its squandering of the nation’s wealth to fund terrorism abroad. Iranian govt should respect their people’s rights, including the right to express themselves. The world is watching!#IranProtests.” On the other hand, countries such as Russia, France, and China stated that the protests in Iran are solely an internal manner to be dealt with by the Iranian government and that any intervention on behalf of the protesters will only inflame the situation.

    2. President Trump Proposes Ambitious Infrastructure Bill

    President Trump this week proposed an ambitious infrastructure reform bill meant to help the US regain a competitive advantage when compared to emerging economies throughout the world.

    Fresh off of the successful passage of his tax reform bill, President Donald Trump has reportedly turned his eye to infrastructure. The Trump Administration plans to introduce a plan in January to repair and renovate the country’s aging and ailing roads, airports, bridges, and transitions. President Trump has repeatedly pledged to restore America’s infrastructure system on both the campaign trail as well as in office. His past as a famous real estate developer gave credibility to boasts that he would restore the crumbling infrastructure of a country that was literally “falling apart.” Since the 1990s, federal infrastructure spending has declined drastically, reaching a 30-year low in 2015. The decline in federal investment infrastructure has put the US in a distinct disadvantage with emerging countries such as Japan, South Korea, Russia, China, India, and Mexico, thus negatively impacting the global competitiveness of the US.

    The Trump Administration’s infrastructure plan calls for at least $200 billion in federal spending on infrastructure projects over the next 10 years, with a goal of attracting at least an additional $800 billion in financing from state and local governments along with private partnerships. Additionally, the proposals include a provision that all projects will include American-produced materials, which many in the administration see as a way to further stimulate the economy and create thousands of new, decent-paying jobs. Overall, the reaction to the Trump Administrations infrastructure has been mixed, with a surprising level of support coming from the Democratic Party. For example, Senator Bernie Sanders has expressed a willingness to work with the Administration on the proposal, as well as House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer. On the other hand, Republicans such as House Speaker Paul Ryan and Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell are lukewarm at best towards the plan, claiming that it will lead to a higher federal budget deficit and force Congressional Republicans to table their proposals to increase defense spending and reform the entitlement system. Overall, it seems highly likely that the Trump Administration’s infrastructure bill will pass due to its strong popularity amongst the American people and the need for infrastructure improvements within the country.

    3. North Korea’s Kim Jong-un “Open to Dialogue” with South Korea

    North Korean President Kim Jong-un expressed a willingness to negotiate with South Korea this week, much to the shock of the international community.

    On December 30, North Korean President Kim Jong-un announced that he is “open to dialogue” with South Korea in the New Year, but has warned the US that he has a “nuclear button” on his desk to use if threatened. In a televised New Year’s speech, Kim said improving ties between the North and South is an “urgent issue”. “It’s a grave matter to which the entire Korean nation needs to put its efforts towards resolving,” he further said. South Korea’s presidential office welcomed Kim’s speech, which included a proposal to send North Korean athletes to Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang. South Korean Presidential spokesperson Park Soo-Hyun said that “We welcome that Kim expressed willingness to send a delegation and proposed talks as he acknowledged the need for improvement in inter-Korean ties.”

    Despite the countries recent overtures towards negotiations and dialogue, Kim Jong-un announced that his country will continue to focus on “mass producing nuclear warheads and ballistic missiles for operational deployment” in 2018 and beyond. Additionally, Kim Jong-un repeated earlier claims that the entire US is now within range of all of North Korea’s nuclear arsenal. Responding to Kim’s comments, US President Donald Trump said “we’ll see, we’ll see” at his New Year’s Eve celebration, held at his Mar-a-Lago residence, in Florida. It can be argued that North Korea’s sudden change in actions can be attributed to two recent developments. The first one being the imposition of a fresh round of sanctions against North Korea by the US Security Council. The second development that may have had an impact of North Korea’s change in behavior is the increased willingness of Russia and China to work with the US to settle the long-standing disputes between both countries. On the other hand, some also argue that North Korea is either hoping to drive a wedge between the US and South Korea over the issue of peace negotiations or is trying to buy some time to improve its nuclear capabilities.