Joseph Robinette Biden

“ The backbone of this country are hardworking folks. Hardworking folks. Middle-class folks. People who built the country. And I might add, I think, unions built the middle class. And it’s about creating opportunity and giving people a fair shot. That’s really all and everything it’s about.
In the coming weeks, Jill and I, and Kamala and Doug, and our Cabinet, with all of you — members of Congress — we’re going to be traveling the country to speak directly to the American people about how this law is going to make a real difference in their lives and how help is here for them. ”

“ It’s going to help people keep a roof over their heads. A half million are — haven’t been able to make their — their mortgage payments, about to be thrown out of their apartments. They have to make up all that they owe. And those mom-and-pop realtors are in real trouble.
It’s going to cut job poverty in half with — with — and, you know, I’ve talked to so many of you. Rosa, you and I’ve spent so much time on this. But you guys — you, Patty, and others — are the ones that have been leading this for so long, and it’s finally coming to fruition. And the American people understand it. ”

“ It’s one thing to pass the American Rescue Plan. It’s going to be another thing to implement it. It’s going to require fastidious oversight to make sure there’s no waste or fraud, and the law does what it’s designed to do. ”

“ It pays for many of the steps we’ve taken on — to vaccinate Americans. We’re going to be in a position where, because of what you all did in the past, we had the money to go out and literally purchase hundreds of millions of vaccines, and then go out and make sure we had enough vaccinators. Vaccine is one thing. To get the vaccine in a vial, out of that vial and into a needle, and a needle into someone’s arm — it took tens of thousands of people. ”

“ You have to be able to tell a story, tell the story of what you’re about to do and why it matters because it’s going to make a difference in the lives of millions of people and in very concrete, specific ways. ”

“ This is going to create — we — we have to spend this money to make sure we have economic growth, unrelated to how much it’s going to help people. Well, guess what? Every single major economist out there — left, right, and center — supported this plan. Even Wall Street agreed. According to Moody’s, for example, by the end of this year, this law alone will create 7 million new jobs. (Applause.) Seven million.
And the bill does one more thing, which I think is really important: It changes the paradigm. For the first time in a long time, this bill puts working people in this nation first. ”

“ I talked to over 160 mayors probably more than two or three times; every governor, save one, who was looking at from Alaska to Russia — and making sure that we’re in a situation where we talk to everybody. But it takes — the devil is in the details. ”

“ We’ve seen time and time again that that trickle down does not work. And, by the way, we don’t have anything against wealthy people. You got a great idea, you’re going to go out and make millions of dollars — that’s fine. ”

“ This leg- — this legislation, as everybody has already mentioned, will provide $1,400 in direct payments, which we all promised. Well, that means for a typical family of four — a middle-class family, husband and wife working, making $110,000 a year — that means a $5,600 check they’re going to get. Eighty-five percent of the households in America will be getting this money. ”