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In Case You Missed It, Senator Donna Soucy, Senator Tom Sherman, Representative Manny Espitia, President of NH Young Democrats, and Joanna Kelley, owner of Cup of Joe in Portsmouth, discussed how President Biden has helped Granite Staters in his first 100 days in office, despite efforts by Chris Sununu and Washington Republicans to oppose COVID relief and block the state’s economic recovery.
Since taking office, President Biden’s American Rescue Plan has had a massive impact on the Granite State economy — creating jobs and helping small businesses reopen and start hiring again. The $1,400 stimulus checks have been distributed to 837,000 adults and 246,500 children -- 82 percent of all adults in the state and 74 percent of New Hampshire’s children. Additionally, $362.2 million in relief has gone to Granite State K-12 public schools.
Read excerpts from their remarks below and watch the press conference here:
Senator Donna Soucy: “This much needed economic relief is life saving for thousands of Granite Staters and allowed our economy to survive these compounding crises. We owe a huge debt of gratitude to President Biden and our congressional delegation for their hard work. Given all of the good the American Rescue Plan has done for New Hampshire, it’s all the more unfortunate that Governor Sununu said that if he was in the Senate, he would have sided with Mitch McConnell, the Kochs and Washington Republicans and blocked this much-needed relief for New Hampshire, denying Granite Staters stimulus checks, child tax credits, unemployment insurance, and so much more. If President Biden could accomplish so much in his first 100 days in office, then I’m excited to see what the future holds for New Hampshire.”
Senator Tom Sherman: “On the vaccine front, the Biden administration has exceeded their target and has helped states administer over 200 million shots in less than 100 days. More than half of U.S. adults have gotten one shot; two-thirds of all seniors are fully vaccinated. Daily deaths are now down 75% since January 20, and that is a reason for optimism. Compounding the public health impact is the economic fallout from the pandemic in NH with 66,000 adults – 7 percent of all adults in the state – reported not having enough to eat. This includes 19,000 adults living with children, or 6 percent of all adults living with children, who also reported that they are not able to provide enough food for their children. This is a tragedy and bold action needed to be taken. Thanks to President Biden and the hard work of our congressional delegation, Granite Staters and their families are getting the relief they deserve.”
President of NH Young Democrats Representative Manny Espitia: “The American rescue plan also had additional relief of up to $1,600 per child through the Child Tax Credit to the families of 222,000 children, lifting 8,000 children out of poverty. Nationwide, this cuts poverty in half. This is a monumental achievement in such a short time and we’re so fortunate that Granite State families and families all over the country are finally getting the relief they need. New Hampshire desperately needs this economic relief. Under Governor Sununu, New Hampshire had one of the nation's largest absolute increases in homelessness between 2019 and 2020, prior to the start of the pandemic. Despite this, Governor Sununu proposed a budget that slashed funding across the board for programs and services that would help the most vulnerable, especially children in New Hampshire, and he would have opposed critical federal relief for children and families in the American Rescue Plan.”
Joanna Kelley, owner of Cup of Joe in Portsmouth: “As a small business owner I’ve seen firsthand how President Biden’s investment in New Hampshire has positively impacted our Granite State economy. I own Cup of Joe in Portsmouth -- a business in the food service industry that was hit particularly hard due to the pandemic. But under President Biden’s leadership over the past 100 days, our small business community is starting to feel optimistic once again. Last month, nationwide small business owners saw retail sales soar well past expectation. Many attribute that to the $1,400 stimulus checks that not a single Republican in Congress voted for, and that Governor Sununu said he would vote against if he could. I was very pleased to see that President Biden and the administration created more new jobs in the first 100 days than any president in history, and is the first to create more than 1 million new jobs in that timespan.”
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