Trump Signs $2 Trillion Coronavirus Stimulus Bill

After bipartisan support in Congress, President Trump signed the largest economic aid package in U.S. history into law on Friday. This package is aimed at easing the burden on workers and businesses suffering from the pandemic. The CARES Act, a $2.2 trillion dollar stimulus package, will allow for checks of up to $1,200 to be sent to independent adults, $2,400 for married couples and an additional $500 per child (dependent).

Instructors, click the link below to download this week’s lecture for use in your classroom. The deck contains a writing prompt and a debate question as well as other assessment questions.

Download the PowerPoint Lecture Spark for Trump Signs $2 Trillion Coronavirus Stimulus Bill

Links

“Here’s what’s in the $2 Trillion stimulus package – and what’s next”
https://www.politico.com/news/2020/03/25/whats-in-stimulus-package-coronavirus-149282

“After Three Coronavirus Stimulus Packages, Congress Is Already Prepping Phase Four”
https://www.wsj.com/articles/after-three-coronavirus-stimulus-packages-congress-is-already-prepping-phase-four-11585483203 

“What To Know About Coronavirus Unemployment”
https://www.npr.org/2020/03/27/822629588/lost-work-because-of-coronavirus-how-to-get-unemployment-skip-loan-payments-and- 

“The CARES Act Has Passed: Here Are The Highlights”
https://www.forbes.com/sites/leonlabrecque/2020/03/29/the-cares-act-has-passed-here-are-the-highlights/#1270da4868cd

“U.S. stimulus package is biggest ever, but may not be big enough”
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-fed-stimulus-analy/us-stimulus-package-is-biggest-ever-but-may-not-be-big-enough-idUSKBN21H0E7 

“Here’s who won’t qualify for beefed up coronavirus unemployment relief”
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/30/heres-who-wont-qualify-for-beefed-up-coronavirus-unemployment-relief.html

“CARES Act will be an economic lifeline for gig workers and freelancers”
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/30/cares-act-will-be-an-economic-lifeline-for-gig-workers-freelancers.html

“Who qualifies for the coronavirus stimulus payments?”
https://www.latimes.com/business/story/2020-03-27/who-qualifies-for-the-stimulus

Assessment

• Writing: Describe the U.S. government’s response to the global pandemic. Has this response been proportional to the crisis? Will this stimulus package be enough to prevent an economic collapse?
• Debate: The stimulus package is a stop-gap-measure that will not completely correct the economy and does not provide adequate support for its workers.
• Poll: Given what you know about the CARES Act, is this bill a necessary step toward economic stability?
• Short Answer: How does the government plan on financing this historic stimulus package?

Current events quiz:

1) Government stimulus checks, under the CARES Act, will be sent to independent adults for up to what amount?

a. $1,000
b. $1,200
c. $12,000
d. $20,000

2) $150 billion in aid will be sent to local and state governments to go towards which of the following?   

a. Educational institutions, disaster relief, and transit
b. Educational institutions and state and local public officials
c. State and local public officials and transit
d. Disaster relief and hospital supplies

3) How much money will the U.S. health care system receive from the stimulus package?

a. $14 billion
b. $20 billion
c. $200 billion
d. $140 billion

4) The CARES Act is only designed to support large corporations (T/F)

5) The CARES Act is the largest stimulus package in modern U.S. history (T/F)

6) Those who have become recently unemployed due to the crisis will not see any additional benefits from the CARES Act (T/F)

Answers:

1) B

2) A

3) D

4) False

5) True

6) False

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