Conservatives will block any rise in the minimum wage, but couldn't completely block additional unemployment benefits.
Progressives would back a rise in the minimum wage, but had to deliver on relief for the unemployed working class, so they did just that.
The secondary effect of rising wages was probably only something that conservatives were expecting.
The alternative of forcing people to go to work while covid-19 sick, or being laid off and facing total abject poverty, and such... well not very attractive.
Prices & wages going up was going to be inevitable with inflation, which was on the plate, even if unemployment was never expanded and we forced the working poor to work, or eat our of dumpsters.
I'm a supporter of the idea of UBI but I just can't see the incentives panning out realistically.
Whereas if the federal government creates more money (via debt) and gives it out direct aid to the people, it goes right into the consumer market. Prices rise across the board, getting the CPI to the target level without the Federal Reserve having to lower rates.
There will always be inflation as long as the monetary policy is to create inflation. But government spending at least chooses somewhere explicit for it to end up, rather than the default option of just inflating financial assets (which we've had quite enough of).