The figure requested by the US president exceeds all those requested at the time by former President Donald Trump.
This Friday, President Joe Biden asked the United States Congress for a budget of US $ 453.8 million to invest in Colombia during the year 2022. The fact is not small, considering that during the last three years Donald Trump asked for a average of US $ 330 million for the country. Those figures, at least for this year, rose thanks to Congress to US $ 412 million, which is still less than the current request of the Democratic president.
According to El Tiempo , the Colombian ambassador to the United States, Francisco Santos, assured about the fact: “This request from the Biden government shows, once again, that relations between Colombia and the United States have been handled seriously and responsibly. . The bipartisan management of this relationship has guaranteed this US support for Colombia, its most important strategic ally in the region. Friends always support each other, even more so in difficult moments ”.
In addition, Biden proposed a $ 6 trillion budget to “reinvent” the US economy and compete with China that, if approved by Congress, will steer the country into record debt. “We must seize the moment to reinvent and build a new American economy that invests in the promise and potential of every American,” the president said in a message to Congress.
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The Covid-19 pandemic plunged the United States into its worst economic crisis since the 1930s, and while the world’s largest economy is beginning to recover, it is still far from pre-pandemic levels. “The United States cannot simply afford to return to where it was before the pandemic and economic recession, with structural weaknesses and inequalities of the old economy still in place,” the president warned.
In America, the president’s annual budget is more of a wish list or a message about his priorities than anything else. It is the legislators who ultimately decide the amount and destination of the money, and the current Congress has a very narrow Democratic majority.
Opposition Republicans are wary of giving central government prominence. And even some of Biden’s supporters warn that the US economy, now ready to recover from the effects of the pandemic, is at risk of spiraling into inflation.
However, the massive plan indicates the determination of the White House to put concrete figures to Biden’s campaign to rethink the relationship between the government and the private sector, in what it defines as an existential competition with China.
Follow the news of El Espectador on Google NewsUnder Biden’s plan, the federal tap would release about $ 6 trillion in 2022, with increases gradually rising to $ 8.2 trillion in 2031. All of this spending could increase debt, which now represents more than 100% of GDP. Gross Domestic. It is expected to reach 111.8% of GDP in 2022 and 117% in 2031.
The Democrat made clear the destination of the $ 6 trillion: much of it would go to an infrastructure bill originally proposed at $ 2.3 trillion, but which has been reduced to $ 1.7 trillion in negotiations with Congress.
Another $ 1.8 trillion would go to increase state funding for education and social services as part of building a better workforce in the 21st century. The overarching goal, Biden argued, is to grow America’s middle class, as well as to put the United States “in competition” with its rivals.
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Can it be approved?
The proposed budget will be released just before the Memorial Day long weekend and with Congress in recess for a week. Introducing it right now may curb its momentum on Capitol Hill, where many Democrats want Biden to use his control of Congress to pass transformative legislation, but Republicans are playing hard at trying to block most of what the president is proposing.
Spending priorities are just one area of division between the two parties. For example, Republicans are virtually unanimous in opposing Biden’s broad definition of infrastructure, which includes green energy and social programs.
There is even less agreement on how to pay for these plans. Biden wants to raise money by ending a corporate tax cut that Republicans passed under his predecessor, Donald Trump.
The president also wants to vigorously go after the tax loopholes used by the large and ultra-million dollar corporations. Republicans refuse to accept that mechanism, saying their own more modest infrastructure spending plans could be paid for by reallocating unspent money already budgeted.
Despite the standoff, and the sheer scale of Biden’s mega-budget, the White House still has a potential ace up its sleeve. Normally, Biden needs at least 10 Republicans to achieve the required majorities in the Senate, today divided equally between the two parties, a difficult task at best.
However, if Democrats remain unanimous, which is also not guaranteed, they may be able to pass the budget through a quick procedure known as reconciliation, which requires fewer votes.
