Democrats’ proposed spending spree tests voter appetite for more government-funded programs

Polls show most, in theory, favor the yet-to-be-finalized $3.5 trillion spending plan, set to be passed in the Senate with Democrat-only votes. While Democrats are still negotiating specifics, most proposals include provisions such as paid family leave, universal preschool, and two years of free community college, as well as expanded Medicare benefits and home care for the elderly or disabled.

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Democrats cite statistics that extensive government aid distributed during the COVID-19 pandemic, in response to economic disruption and rising unemployment, reduced the poverty rate in 2020. The census reported that accounting for those aid payments, the poverty rate declined from 11.8% in 2019 to 9.1% in 2020. A majority supported the stimulus payments.

Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders touted the report about a reduction in poverty as evidence that Congress should pass the spending package.

Ron Faucheux, a nonpartisan pollster and political analyst, told the Washington Examiner that “polls usually show that voters support new programs and benefits, but you have to be careful when reading these polls.”

“They don’t always provide context or drill down on the issue,” Faucheux said. “Exactly who benefits from the program? How is it paid for? Do you think government will competently manage it? The more questions you ask, the more details you test, the more public support usually dwindles.”

Voters will have their say on the appropriate level of federal spending, among other issues, in the 2022 midterm elections. House Republicans need to win about five seats to reclaim the majority they lost in 2018. And Democrats have a bare majority

in the 50-50 Senate, due to Vice President Kamala Harris’s tiebreaking vote.

No Republicans currently support the $3.5 trillion spending plan, arguing the proposal is full of wasteful spending and would damage the economy with higher taxes.

Still, some Republicans have offered their own versions of proposals to increase the social safety net, indicating they may see such policies as appealing to voters.

One of those proposals is the New Parents Act, proposed by Sens. Marco Rubio of Florida and Mitt Romney of Utah. The bill would allow new parents to finance one to three months of paid parental leave with a portion of their Social Security funds after the birth or adoption of a child.

“Our economic policies need to reflect our values, and right now far too many young, working families are falling behind,” Rubio said in a statement. “We can support working and stay-at-home moms and dads alike without raising taxes or expanding federal bureaucracy.”

Romney said in a statement that “American families are facing greater financial strain, worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic, and marriage and birth rates are at an all-time low.”

“In Utah, and throughout the United States, a majority of working parents do not get paid when they take time off from work after the birth or adoption of a child, which can mean depleted savings, credit card debt, and student loan defaults,” Romney said, adding the bill would “give parents the flexibility to take time off from work with pay during the first weeks of their children’s lives, without growing our national debt, raising taxes, or creating a new entitlement program.”

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The House Ways and Means Committee voted to advance Democrats’ spending plan to the Budget Committee this week. Democratic leaders will seek to pass it in the coming weeks through the reconciliation process so they can approve it on a simple majority. But the bill could still face a complicated path forward, as both Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona have objected to its size.