Thanks to the American Rescue Plan , the federal government is now spending $1.9 trillion to fight COVID-19 and to help the public get through the pandemic. A big chunk of that money is going to direct cash payments, upgrades to the Affordable Care Act and a child allowance that progressives have been talking up for years.

Its a remarkable accomplishment, given how difficult launching new government programs has been for the past few decades, and suggests that we may be on the cusp of a new political era friendlier to such initiatives. No less a lefty hero than Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) is calling it the most significant piece of legislation to benefit working families in the modern history of this country.

But the achievement comes with an asterisk: The relief measures will end in two years. Making them permanent, as Biden and the Democrats hope to do, will require finding some combination of taxes and spending cuts to cover the ongoing costs. This was not something Biden and the Democrats had to do for the American Rescue Plan, because it had no offsets.

As for whether the relief program signals a change in the political environment, that too is unclear.

The American Rescue Plan could be the first in a series of big initiatives that eventually stirs memories of the New Deal and Great Society, touching everything from climate to the cost of college. Or it could be an isolated legislative accomplishment tied to the specific conditions of the pandemic a flicker of Democratic unity and progressive ambition that will die just as soon as the national emergency ends.