Joe Manchin rejects Democrat push to enact Biden agenda this month and calls for $ 3.5 trillion bill

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Manchin, who has long been skeptical about the incredible price, made it clear Thursday that he also opposes the deadline Democratic leaders had been presenting for months, a position that now threatens the largest proposal just for Democrats but also $ 1.2 trillion infrastructure. bill passed by the Senate earlier this summer.
In a heavily written paper published Thursday in the Wall Street Journal, the moderate senator called on fellow Democrats to “take a strategic break in budget conciliation legislation,” referring to the bill that can only be passed by a simple majority in the Senate. , that is, all 50 members of the Senate Democratic Caucus must support the bill or it will collapse, as the 50 Republicans are expected to oppose it.

“Instead of rushing to spend billions on new government programs and additional funding for incentives, Congress should take a strategic break in budget conciliation legislation,” he wrote in the opinion. “A pause is warranted because it will provide more clarity on the trajectory of the pandemic and allow us to determine whether inflation is transitory or not.”

He added: “While some have suggested that this reconciliation legislation should be passed now they believe that making budgetary decisions in artificial political terms never leads to good policies or sound decisions. I have always said that if I can’t explain it , I can’t vote and I can’t explain why my fellow Democrats are rushing to spend $ 3.5 trillion. ”

Manchin says he can’t agree with the $ 3.5 trillion plan “or anywhere near that level of additional spending” without fully assessing the effects on the economy.

Democratic leaders have set a Sept. 15 deadline for drafting their reconciliation bill, and House committees have already begun taking action on their individual pieces of the broader proposal. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has warned colleagues she will not move into the $ 1.2 trillion infrastructure law (passed between 69 and 30 in the Senate last month) until the Senate first approves the largest democratic agreement.

But Pelosi was forced to pact with his moderate Democratic members last month to assure them that the Senate infrastructure bill would reach the House on September 27th. The Senate first approves the only Democratic reconciliation proposal.

So if Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer can’t meet the competent wings of their groups, Democrats fear the whole effort could explode.

The massive bill would include measures such as funding to combat climate change, paid family and medical leave, the extension of the tax credit for children, and would be funded in part through tax increases on businesses and high-income workers.

But Manchin is not the only senator who could make a wrinkle in the process.

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, a moderate Arizona Democrat, also said in the past that she did not support the high price.

“Proceedings in the U.S. House of Representatives will have no impact on Kyrsten’s views on what is best for our country, including the fact that it will not support a $ 3.5 trillion budget reconciliation bill.” , his spokesman John LaBombard told CNN last month. His office did not respond to a request for comment Thursday.

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