Democrats pledge to push Biden s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 rescue plan through Congress without Republican support despite president s bid for unity
Biden s plan will unleash $400 billion to expand vaccinations and to reopen schools, $1,400 direct payments to households, and other priorities
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi are laying the groundwork to start the go-it-alone approach as soon as next week
Democrats said the stubbornly high unemployment numbers and battered U.S. economy leave them unwilling to waste time courting Republican support
Biden has been appealing directly to Republican and Democratic lawmakers while signaling his priority to press ahead
The Congresswoman Reflects on Her Mentor
January 29, 2021
I would not be Congresswoman Barbara Lee without Congresswoman Shirley Anita Chisholm. Few people have opened more doors for women, children, African Americans and other people of color in elected office than Shirley Chisholm. And without Shirley Chisholm, we would not even think it possible for the first Black woman to serve as vice president of the United States. Nor would we have elected the first African American man as the first president of the United States.
I first recognized her impact when I attended Mills College in Oakland, California. I was a young, single mom on public assistance and food stamps at the time. I was serving as president of the Black Student Union, volunteering with the Black Panther Party, and raising two young boys. My professor in our government class assigned us fieldwork on a presidential campaign. George McGovern, Hubert Humphrey, and Ed Muskie were the candidates, but my mind was already m
Experts say the hunger crisis has increased in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic.
They say a lack of healthy food can exacerbate health issues, including heart disease and high blood pressure, in people of all ages.
They note that hunger can also affect children’s performance in school as well as cause developmental delays.
All data and statistics are based on publicly available data at the time of publication. Some information may be out of date. Visit our coronavirus hub and follow our live updates page for the most recent information on the COVID-19 pandemic.
“As soon as I get the box, I start thinking: I can put the mixed vegetables with the ground meat. I can make soup and beef stew, rice and beans and pasta. I have stuff for salads. They’re even giving me eggs I can make for breakfast.”
USDA Expands Benefits
Families hit by the coronavirus are about to receive more funds under the Pandemic EBT Program (P-EBT).
The Colorado Department of Human Services has helpful information online about who is eligible and how to participate.
CDHS Video: “Families who participate in the Supplemental Assistance Program or SNAP and whose children attend a school that participates in the National School Lunch Program will automatically receive EBT Funds on their existing cards. Eligible families who currently do not participate in SNAP will receive instruction on how to receive those benefits.”
To date, the program has capped P-EBT benefit amounts at $5.86 per child per school day. Many households have had trouble claiming benefits according to the USDA news service. The agency will increase the current daily benefit amount by approximately 15%.
Biden Plan Could Improve Health, Reduce Racial Disparities With WIC Investment
The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children has a proven record of improving lifetime health for women and their young children.
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President Bidenâs emergency relief plan includes a substantial investment in WIC to help it reach more eligible families, marking one of the planâs several food assistance expansions to reduce todayâs high levels of hunger and hardship. WIC, which is federally funded but operated by local clinics, provides low-income pregnant individuals, new parents, babies, and toddlers with nutritious foods, nutrition education, breastfeeding support, and referrals to health care and social services â but millions of eligible people arenât enrolled.