Yellen Denies Urging Smaller Biden Relief Plan in Early 2021

Janet Yellen denied advocating for a smaller American Rescue Plan than the $1.9 trillion package proposed by the Biden administration and passed by Congress in early 2021, after an advance copy of a book about the Treasury secretary showed she initially urged scaling it back by a third.

Her statement -- issued, unusually, on Saturday following a Friday report by Bloomberg News on excerpts from the book -- illustrates the administration’s struggles to convey a unified front as the fastest inflation in 40 years severely threatens Democrats’ chances to retain their thin congressional majorities in November’s midterm elections.