Contact: Johanna Kichton, press@peoplesaction.org, 202.660.0605
WASHINGTON, D.C.—People’s Action Climate Justice Campaign Director Kaniela Ing today released the following statement in response to news reports of President Biden’s upcoming $3 trillion infrastructure, jobs, education, and climate package:
“I’m encouraged to see President Biden driving forward his campaign promise to create millions of good jobs to tackle the climate crisis. But $3 trillion is not enough to address the scale of the overlapping crises we face. Even Senator Manchin has expressed support for a $4 trillion recovery plan, because it is obvious that all of our communities need massive investment and structural change.
“Knowing the GOP will obstruct any proposal and call for even more austerity, we need to be unflinching in our values. We cannot negotiate before even entering the room. $3 trillion is a good start, but President Biden’s plan must include at least $10 trillion through the next decade, as outlined in the THRIVE Agenda, and supported by hundreds of grassroots organizations and over 100 members of Congress, including Majority Leader Schumer and members of ‘the Squad’. At this scale, we would build back better with over 15 million new union jobs, while enshrining climate, racial, and worker justice into federal law.
“This is a once in a generation opportunity, so we have no choice but to plan ahead.”
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People’s Action is a national network of 40 state and local grassroots, power-building organizations in 30 states, united in fighting for justice. We operate the largest progressive rural organizing project in the country. People’s Action and its member organizations coordinated one of the biggest distributed organizing programs in rural areas this election season.