A key Democratic senator said he would not support $ 3.5 trillion.
Faced with new opposition to his national agenda from a key Democratic senator, one of President Joe Biden’s top advisers said the White House “is still full to try to pass our legislation.”
“Look, Senator Manchin is a valuable partner, we will continue to work with him, but we will also continue to push our agenda,” President Cedric Richmond’s senior adviser, pressured by anchor George Stephanopoulos on Sunday, said on “This Week” as will happen without the support of the senator.
“It is not abnormal for this to happen in the legislative process … we are still in full swing to try to pass our legislation,” he added.
With Congress scheduled to return from recess next Monday, the fate of the president’s agenda is uncertain after moderate Sen. Joe Manchin declared in an opinion Thursday that he would not support the $ 3.5 trillion budget resolution that only Democrats, including Manchin, took the first step to pass last month through a process called reconciliation. Manchin called for a “strategic break” in this bill, which contains many of Biden’s “human infrastructure” priorities, including health care, child care and the renewal of the country’s energy sector to address the climate change.
With significant Republican support, the Senate has also passed a $ 1 trillion traditional infrastructure bill, but Progressive Democrats have threatened to try to close the smaller package if the $ 1 billion bill is not passed. $ 3.5 trillion.
Richmond cited Hurricane Ida, which caused more than a million customers in Louisiana to lose power while killing at least 67 people in eight states, as proof that the United States needs to invest in both its infrastructure and fight against climate change. Richmond, a former Louisiana congressman, accompanied the president to his home state to analyze the storm’s damage Friday.
“People should see now more than ever the importance of having resilience and strengthening our power grid and investing in our infrastructure,” Richmond said. “These storms, once a century, start coming in almost every two years, they’re bigger, they’re stronger and they’re wreaking havoc … people should see what climate change is doing, and we’ll take care of that.”
The latest ABC News / Washington Post poll showed Biden’s job approval underwater at 44%, a six-point drop since the end of June, as it faces strong criticism for its treatment of the withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan. Pressed by Stephanopoulos on whether this would make it difficult for Biden to achieve his legislative priorities, Richmond set aside the figures.
“No, I don’t think so. I think what will really happen is that people will start to realize what we need, the challenges we face,” Richmond said, citing COVID-19 and the hurricane. “We’re meeting the challenges and I think people appreciate it. Does he always stay in the polls? Maybe, maybe not. … He’s never been a president who cared about himself. He really cares about the country, so we don’t care about the voting numbers. “
Richmond also intervened in the president’s response in Texas to enact the country’s most restrictive abortion law, which banned almost all abortions after about six weeks. Courts have rejected similar bills, but the Supreme Court refused to immediately block Texas law, which has an unprecedented enforcement mechanism that places responsibility on everyday Americans instead of government.
“We will do everything we can to try to resolve this situation for the people of Texas. It is just a cruel and destructive law on women’s rights,” Richmond said.
Biden has instructed the Department of Justice to review the law, as well as the Health and Human Services and White House Gender Policy Council to examine other options the administration may take to ensure that women are still entitled to safe abortion, as established. by the precedent set by Roe against Wade, Richmond said.
President Nancy Pelosi said she will introduce legislation to codify Roe’s precedent and Richmond said Biden supports that effort.