4th stimulus check? Biden open to it, ‘happy to hear’ range of ideas on economy

As President Joe Biden continues to push his own agenda to jump start the economy and transform the country’s infrastructure, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki says the president is open to differing ideas that will boost the economy… including a fourth round of stimulus checks.

“He’s happy to hear from a range of ideas on what would be most effective and what’s most important to the economy moving forward,” Psaki said while speaking to reporters last Thursday.

However, Psaki went on to say the president already has proposed the plans that he feels are best to stimulate economic recovery, referring to Biden’s proposed $1.7 trillion American Jobs Plan and the $1.8 trillion American Families Plan.

“But he’s also proposed what he thinks is going to be the most effective for the short term for putting people back to work, to getting through this pivotal period of time, and also to making us more competitive in the long term,” Psaki said.

Biden and his staff have been hesitant to throw support behind the idea of a fourth stimulus check for Americans, despite the growing list of elected officials and citizens who say another round is necessary. Last month, six Democratic members of the House Ways and Means Committee sent a letter to Biden urging him to support another round of checks.

“The pandemic has served as a stark reminder that families and workers need certainty in a crisis,” reads a portion of the letter. “They deserve to know they can put food on the table and keep a roof over their heads.”

More than 80 Democrats in Congress have now expressed support for the move, but Biden hasn’t jumped on board.

Along with elected officials, many Americans say they need another round of checks as the economy slowly begins to reopen. More than 2.3 million people have signed a petition on Change.org calling for monthly payments of $2,000 to every American to provide relief and stability.

Calls for another round of stimulus comes as the IRS is continuing to issue checks for the third round of stimulus and preparing for the launch of the expanded Child Tax Credit. Thus far the IRS has sent out 167 million payments for the third round of stimulus.

On Monday, the IRS announced it will be sending letters to the more than 36 million families who will qualify for the expanded Child Tax Credit. That expanded credit will give families the opportunity to receive monthly payments for the final six months of 2021 worth up to $300 per child under the age of 6 and $250 per child between the ages of 6 and 17.

As part of his American Families Plan, Biden has proposed extending the expansion of the credit until 2025.

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