"Hostages of the internal party struggle": why US lawmakers did not agree on a moratorium on evictions

Legislators in the lower house of Congress were unable to agree on an extension of the moratorium on the eviction of citizens who lost their income due to the COVID-19 pandemic and are now unable to pay their rent. Initially, it was assumed that the moratorium, which expires on July 31, will be extended until October 18 amid the spread of the new coronavirus strain "delta", but the deputies from the two parties could not come to an agreement. This is stated in a joint statement by Speaker Nancy Pelosi and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer.

“It is extremely disappointing that House and Senate Republicans have refused to work with us on this issue.

We urge them to reconsider their stance on helping millions of Americans and join us to help renters and homeowners affected by the pandemic and prevent a nationwide eviction crisis, ”the press release said.

• House Speaker Nancy Pelosi

• Reuters

• © Elizabeth Frantz

Later, at a press briefing for journalists, Pelosi noted that lawmakers "did not have enough time to come to a consensus," however, she stressed, attempts to resolve this issue will not be abandoned.

After all, as the speaker recalled, within the framework of the moratorium, significant funds were allocated to support both homeowners and their tenants, but this money has not yet been distributed in full.

“It is important to note that at the end of last year ... more than $ 46 billion was allocated in the anti-crisis package for tenants and landlords.

Unfortunately, from this amount, as we know, only $ 3 billion was distributed, ”Pelosi said.

According to her, people who are on the verge of eviction, "are forced to pay for all those obstacles that the authorities of these settlements and states refuse to overcome in order to distribute funding."

Earlier, US President Joe Biden made an appeal to support the prolongation of the moratorium.

According to him, local authorities in the states should continue to distribute among those in need the funds allocated as part of the American Rescue Plan ("American Rescue Plan") package of measures to combat the pandemic and its consequences.

• US President Joe Biden

• Reuters

• © Evelyn Hockstein

"Every state and local government must allocate these funds to prevent any evictions," Biden said.

Recall that the moratorium on evictions from rented housing, introduced in September 2020 by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) during the presidency of Donald Trump, expires on July 31, 2021.

At the same time, the landlords themselves expressed dissatisfaction with the actions of the government.

They argued their disagreement with losses due to the impossibility of evicting insolvent tenants.

Landlords have lost nearly $ 70 billion, according to the National Association of Homeowners, and the government's funding covers just over half of the debt.

However, the US Supreme Court found the moratorium justified, but ruled that a congressional decision would be needed to extend tenants' rights to defer payment.

Millions of Americans could be left without a roof over their heads if the eviction prevention measure ends, the Center for Budget and Policy Priorities warns.

According to officials, if the moratorium ends, about 11 million Americans could be left without a roof over their heads.

In turn, the Aspen Institute cites a figure of 15 million citizens.

However, some states have made an independent decision to continue the moratorium on evictions.

For example, the state of New York extended it until August 31, and the state of California - until September 30.

Republican "no"

At the same time, Republicans believe that the current restriction of tenants' rights to evict defaulters is only temporary and does not solve the problem in the long term.

This, in particular, was stated by the member of the US House of Representatives Tom Emmer.

“The Democrats ran the Emergency Rental Assistance Program in the most incompetent way: only 6.5% of the funds went to needy Americans.

Extending the moratorium on evictions is a temporary solution.

Democrats must finally distribute the $ 46 billion in rent to families who need help, ”he said on Twitter.

Democrats grossly mismanaged the #ERA - only 6.5% of it has reached Americans who need it.

Extending the eviction moratorium is a Band-Aid solution.

Democrats must finally distribute the $ 46 billion in rental assistance to the families who need it.

https://t.co/Cp200c79TW

- Tom Emmer (@RepTomEmmer) July 30, 2021

And his colleague and party member Patrick McHenry, who blocked the extension of the moratorium, called such a measure a failure of the Biden administration.

"This is a full-blown fiasco of the Biden administration, with which the Republicans have been trying to do something for several months," McHenry said, calling the moratorium unconstitutional.

According to him, the Republicans presented their plan to support landlords, but the Democrats did not take it into account.

• Gettyimages.ru

• © IP Galanternik DU

“This problem ... Congress could have solved a month ago if it had tackled a bill proposed by Republican committee members.

Instead, the Democrats delayed and hesitated because of their party priorities.

Now, after months of silence on the matter, the White House is issuing a press release that will in no way help the distressed tenants, ”added McHenry.

In this regard, experts believe that American lawmakers are now more concerned not with social issues, but with political ones - in 2022, there will be midterm elections to the Senate, where candidates will be elected for a six-year term (the last such elections were held in 2016).

"Republicans and Democrats today are interested in political struggle, the possibility of accusing each other and even setting them up, so they failed to agree on extending the moratorium," Yuri Rogulyov, director of the Franklin Roosevelt US Research Foundation at Moscow State University, said in a conversation with RT.

He also noted that due to the party confrontation in the United States today, many important issues for American society are suspended, which affects the solution of social problems.

"In the United States, they cannot cope with their own internal problems because of the party confrontation, which captures not only Washington, but also occurs at the state level, as a result of which the population and their problems become hostages of this struggle," the analyst added.

Andrei Sidorov, head of the Department of International Organizations and World Political Processes at the Faculty of World Politics at Moscow State University, also spoke about the Republicans' attack on the Democrats.

“In social issues, the Republicans will now put more pressure on the Democrats and, as a result, similar situations will be created.

In general, now the Republican Party is determined to criticize the Democrats for the fact that they realized too late to extend the moratorium, "he told RT.

At the same time, Sidorov noted that there are contradictions not only between parties, but also between local authorities.

"Today in the United States there are contradictions not only between Republicans and Democrats, but also between the states and the federal government, and between the states themselves, as a result of which different policies are being pursued with regard to social problems," said the interlocutor of RT.

Biden under attack

At the same time, analysts note that the current confrontation between the parties is taking place against the background of the difficult financial situation of the United States.

And all these components can hurt the rating of the American president.

“Biden's rating is already falling.

Most likely, this confrontation will be continued and intensified, and, as a result, this game will unfold not only at the federal level, but also in each of the states, ”Yuri Rogulyov expressed his opinion.

Andrei Sidorov also said that the head of the United States will have to make difficult decisions to get the situation out of the crisis.

“Given that the fight against the pandemic during the Trump presidency took place at the expense of the active work of the" printing press ", now Biden will have to raise the debt ceiling or freeze the borrowing of the federal government.

If this issue is not resolved, it means that the federal government will face serious problems with the end of the financial year, ”the expert emphasized.

Sidorov also added that the way out of the pandemic is overlapping with long-term problems, such as the migration crisis, which creates a difficult agenda for Democrats.

“Despite the fact that all the American media are liberal and loyal to the Democratic Party, if the situation escalates, it will hit Biden and the Democrats in general hard,” the expert concluded.