Biden's statement was a much-needed intervention, allowing Senate Democrats an off-ramp to what has been months of tangled negotiations that appear nowhere near resolved as time runs out ahead of the Christmas holiday. At the same time, Democrats were rushing to show progress on another jammed-up priority: voting rights legislation that, Biden acknowledged, also faces hurdles. “We must also press forward on voting rights legislation, and make progress on this as quickly as possible,” Biden said. The current bill would extend the enhanced child tax credit for just one year, a device to contain the bill's cost. The Treasury Department says the expanded tax credit has helped the families of 61 million children.

Source: thestar December 16, 2021 21:22 UTC