I wrote a little while ago about how Democrats had axed paid family leave as part of their big spending bill — well, it looks like that might not be the case anymore. Now there are reports that Democrats are adding four weeks of paid family and medical leave to their reconciliation bill. It’s possible that the timing is coincidental, but it’s really interesting to think about this move in the context of their loss in Virginia last night, and the role of education and parental anger in that race. Is this an attempt to show parents who are running on fumes after 20 months of unpredictable-to-nonexistent childcare that Democrats are there for them? A way to prevent some of the clear frustration that parents are feeling from backfiring against them again? If that’s the case, I’m not sure that four weeks of paid leave will do the trick — but it’s interesting to think about the political chess here.
