Given the current COVID-19 crisis in the United States, a lot is riding on who gets elected in November. The major candidates (Joe Biden and Donald Trump) have very differing economic views on healthcare, infrastructure and jobs, climate change, and taxation. I’m going to give my input on which economic plan I think would be the most beneficial, breaking down each candidate’s economic plans (in simple terms) and what each could mean for America. Although Mr. Biden’s plans are expensive, in the long run, they are worth it. They will benefit the economy, environment, and healthcare systems of the United States. Even though it will end up costing those in the top one percent an estimated additional 100,000 dollars in taxes per year, I believe that for the greater good of the average person in America, and for future generations, Mr. Biden’s economic plan is better than President Trump’s. 

Let’s start off with the current president of the United States.: Mr. Donald Trump. In terms of healthcare, for the 2021 proposed budget, Mr. Trump plans on cutting over a trillion dollars from the Medicaid ($900 billion) and Medicare ($450 billion) programs over the next 10 years. Medicaid offers aid to those who are low-income, pregnant, or disabled, and users pay little to nothing for the medical services. Medicare covers people over 65, and users are required to pay deductibles for medical services. Budget cuts to these programs could mean less aid offered for those who need assistance with their medical bills. 

Mr. Trump has been looking for an infrastructure bill worth over one trillion dollars to “rebuild America” since 2016. His wish was recently granted when the House approved a 1.5 trillion dollar infrastructure bill that will be spent mostly on repairing and upgrading roads, railways, bridges, transit systems, and ports. 

Mr. Trump says he will no longer issue new green card visas to reserve jobs for Americans, and he is planning to help bail out many industries by offering them large stimulus packages. 

Mr. Trump has made his views that climate change isn’t real very clear. Trump has made many preposterous statements about climate change, such as “We should be focused on magnificently clean and healthy air and not distracted by the expensive hoax that is global warming!” Given that he has received nearly $1.5 million in donations to his campaign from oil and gas companies, this should come as no surprise. Furthermore, Mr. Trump has also begun processes to fund more drilling projects throughout America. These actions alone will be detrimental to future generations of Americans, but also to future generations worldwide. 

Last but not least: taxes. Mr. Trump has extended the Tax Cuts and Job Act to 2030, which will end up costing the federal government a lot of money. The Tax Cuts and Job Act cut tax rates across all tax brackets and changed the income level thresholds for many tax brackets. This is a pro for those in higher tax brackets. 

Now let’s take a look at the opposition: former Vice President, Mr. Joe Biden. In terms of healthcare, Mr. Biden seeks to take a stance similar to that of the Obama administration, announcing plans to upgrade the Affordable Care Act. He also plans to change the age of Medicare eligibility from 65 to 60. Although this will insure many more Americans than Mr. Trump’s healthcare plans, it is estimated that it will cost an additional 750 billion dollars. This would mean that the federal government would have to find ways to fund this project, which could mean an increase in taxes. The difference between Mr. Trump and Mr. Biden’s plans would be an additional 2.1 trillion dollars for Medicare and Medicaid. 

Regarding infrastructure, Mr. Biden wants to set in place a new plan that would lower America’s net greenhouse gas emissions to zero, and money would be spent on schooling, upgrading transit systems, as well as roads and bridges. Although Mr. Biden’s plans place more emphasis on climate and schooling, less funding will be applied to the much-needed repair and upgrade of roads, bridges, highways, etc. than is currently in Mr. Trump’s plan. 

Mr. Biden also wants to distribute around 140,000 green card visas, in direct contrast to Trump’s plans. 

Mr. Biden wants the U.S. to rejoin the Paris Climate Agreement and wants the U.S. to have zero net emissions by 2050. He also plans to ban new drilling sites around the U.S. This is much better for the environment than Mr. Trump’s plan; however, keep in mind that again, this will cost a lot of money, and the government is going to have to fund these projects. As I have pointed out numerous times in this article, Mr. Biden’s plans are extremely expensive, and will cost trillions of dollars. In order to compensate for this, Mr. Biden plans to raise taxes on the wealthy. Even though his plans for increased taxation are estimated to accrue over four trillion dollars over the next decade, it has a hefty price tag for those earning high incomes. It is estimated that the brunt of these taxes will be held by the top 20 percent of households, and the top one percent will be responsible for paying nearly 75% of the four trillion dollars in tax (the top one percent being those with a household income of over 421,000 dollars).