2 in 3 say coronavirus relief should be top priority for Biden in first 100 days: poll

Two-thirds of registered voters say a coronavirus relief package should be the top priority for President-elect Joe Biden in his first 100 days in office in a new Politico-Morning Consult poll released Wednesday. 

The push for a relief bill comes from voters of both parties, with 78 percent of Democrats and 53 percent of Republicans saying it should be a top priority at the start of a Biden administration.

Sixty-nine percent of voters overall also say that controlling the coronavirus pandemic should be a top priority, and 67 percent say the same of cobbling together a vaccine distribution plan. Registered voters were allowed to choose more than one issue they hope would be prioritized.

The poll comes as bipartisan negotiations on Capitol Hill to hammer out a relief package languish amid disagreements over how much money should be included.

House Democrats passed a $3 trillion bill in May and later approved a $2.2 trillion version of that package in October. Both pieces of legislation include money for state and local governments, enhanced unemployment benefits and a second round of stimulus payments.

Republicans have panned the Democratic plans as being too expensive and said bills with those price tags would not be able to pass the GOP-controlled Senate.

Biden has pressed for the parties to come together, saying an agreement is crucial in the fight against the pandemic. 

“Right now, Congress should come together and pass a COVID relief package like the HEROES Act that the House passed six months ago,” Biden said Monday, referencing the $3 trillion bill. “Once we shut down the virus and deliver economic relief to workers and businesses, then we can start to build back better than before.” 

“The refusal of Democrats and Republicans to cooperate with one another is not due to some mysterious force beyond our control. It’s a conscious decision. It’s a choice that we make,” he added. “If we can decide not to cooperate, then we can decide to cooperate.”

The Politico-Morning Consult poll surveyed 1,992 registered voters from Nov. 13 to 16 and has a margin of error of 2 percentage points.