Biden infrastructure/tax increase megathread

[Motorcity]

This is a good bill.
We do need to improve our infrastructure and now is the right time especially coming out of Covid.

Afterwards, maybe we should be a bit more careful with our spending and see how this plus the stimulus plays out. We could focus on HR1 in the meantime.

Nah, we still a public option, free college, student loan forgiveness, and a overhaul of SNAP, welfare, VA, and disability. But most of that will be in the 2023 FY Bill

Short term goals should be voting rights, union rights, guns, immigration, and minimum wage. God, typing this last sentence makes me giddy

[Motorcity]

What is SALT and why does it matter?

[Motorcity]

What is SALT and why does it matter?

A tax deduction that allows high tax states to fund social services, like schools, without needing insanely high tax rates.

Why is Biden against it?

[Motorcity]

So, let me see if I understand how things stand

The Democrats are currently preparing a reconciliation bill for the 2022 FY

They plan to spend 4 trillion dollars

They have split the bill into two pieces. The 2 trillion that covers healthcare and education will be part of the 2022 reconciliation bill this Summer.

The infrastructure and tax bill is 2 trillion. Biden hopes republicans will vote for it as a separate bill, clearing 60 votes. If not, they’ll combine this bill with the reconciliation bill for a massive 4 trillion reconciliation bill.

Is that correct?

Also, any chance a public option will be in the FY 2022 bill? Or even a minimum wage increase

[Motorcity]

I think what's potentially at stake is finally fixing Obamacare. Apart from some tinkering around the edges legislatively, the law is largely unchanged since its enactment (apart from the Medicaid expansion having been declared optional by the Supreme Court). Typically, major laws like those are amended many times in the immediately succeeding years. That did not happen since Republicans took control of the House several months after the bill became law (and years before many of the provisions became operative). There hasn't been a chance to do this since this is the first Democratic trifecta in a decade.

I do know the American Rescue Plan Act has some parts that improve Obamacare, including increased premium subsidies and incentives for states to expand Medicaid. A new bill could improve Obamacare considerably. I'm like a lot of people on the left and very much supportive of Medicare for All, but that's not realistic right now. There are other things that can be done though. Medicaid could be further expanded. Obamacare as enacted expanded Medicaid to all adults at over 133% federal poverty line (technically 138% because of a 5% deduction). The House bill at the time wanted 150% (presumably 155% in effect). That could be done now, or something even higher. There's also the potential of lowering the Medicare age to 55 or 60, increasing premium subsidies, allowing the federal government to negotiate prescription drug prices, and increasing federal funds for Medicaid.

I agree with all of this, but what we really need is a public option. Every senate democrat, even Manchin, supports this. It would basically be Medicare for All who wants it

And lower the Medicare age to 50. Most people don't get cancer scans until 65 even though it starts mostly in the 50s

[Motorcity]

If I was Chuck Schumer, I would threten to fire senate parilmentarian. And get Joe Biden to promise Joe Manchin and Sinema what ever they want to pass this plan

The Build Back Better Plan

Healthcare
•   Lower Medicare age to 50
•   Expand Medicare to cover dental, hearing, and vision.
•   Caps on premiums
•   Expand Obamacare subsidies
•   Public Option
•   Negotiate drug prices.
•   Free insulin

Education
•   Raise teacher pay.
•   Free community college, universities, and trade schools
•   Forgive all student debt.
•   Housing and food assistance

Infrastructure
•   1 trillion for roads and bridges
•   Expand broadband.
•   Clean lead pipes
•   Improves Native American Reservations
•   Cleaner Fuel Grid

Social
•   Raise minimum wage to $15.
•   PRO Union Act
•   Fix USPS
•   Paid Family Leave
•   Make child credit permanent.
•   Free school lunch
•   Expand and simplify SNAP, TAFT, welfare, unemployment, and disability.
•   H.R 1 Voting Rights Act
•   Immigration Act
•   Housing and rental assistance
•   DC and Puerto Rico statehood

[Motorcity]

Good, raising the gas tax is a guaranteed way of losing in 2022. Democrat’s intentionally raising prices at the pump writes its own propaganda

[Motorcity]

Good, raising the gas tax is a guaranteed way of losing in 2022. Democrat’s intentionally raising prices at the pump writes its own propaganda

How incredibly naive to assume that "this midterm will be different" or "Democrats are not already basically guaranteed to lose." Also good policy should always take precedent over electoral concerns, Democrats need to act on climate, like yesterday.

1. The most likely scarnio is Democrats losing in the midterms yes, but it is not inevitable. If Democrats use the FY 2022 and FY 2023 to pass popular items like infrastrcutre, free college, public option, lower medicare age, student loans, etc. We have a chance. But only if Democrats pass Joe Manchin's bill on banning gerrymandering

2. In a perfect world, good policy would take precedent over electoral concerns. Except we don't live in a perfect world. If we aren't careful, a outright fascist could take over in 2024. A gas tax does not help. Nor is it good policy, it would hurt the lower and middle class.

[Motorcity]

Politically, it would be among the dumbest moves ever for the GOP to go along with this bill

Biden can

A) brag about getting infrastructure passed
B) brag about doing it in a bipartisan manner
C) pass all the other stuff through reconciliation

The dems made a brilliant play by not going along with Tim Scott’s criminal justice reform bill, knowing it would give Trump a win before the election

What in the world are republicans thinking?

If Republicans don't agree to a bipartisan deal, Democrats get everything they want through reconcillation AND all the credit.

This way, Republicans can get credit for physical infrastructure which is popular with their base. And won't hurt them farther with independents. They also think that Manchin/Sinema might tamper the reconcillation bill after a bipartisan infrastructure bill.

[Motorcity]

Good for Biden

If he does what he says, bipartisan infrastructure bill and everything else by reconcillation, than it will be a major success

If he can pass free college and public option by the FY 2023 bill, his first two years will be a major success

[Motorcity]

The House shouldn’t even let this pile of garbage come to a vote unless the Senate passes a 4-5 trillion dollar reconciliation bill first. 

Who's gonna pay for this $950B package? Did they keep the tax hikes on the rich?

Edit: nvm saw that there's no new taxes. Garbage

Would ya'll calm down?

Biden wanted 2 trillion for physical infrastructure and 2 trillion for human infrastrucure.

The budget request was 6 trillion (the final 2 trillion was just the normal budget)

The bipartisan deal was 1.2 trillion. I'm sure the rest will be passed by reconcillation

And yes, there will proabably be tax increases

And even if there isn't, who cares? Debt and deficit don't really matter its just conservative talking points. Besides, the economic acivity will raise revenues anyway.

[Motorcity]

Can we talk about how absurd it is to see Romney stand next to Biden

Imagine telling someone after the 2012 election that President Joe Biden, just starting his FIRST term in 2021, was making a deal with SENATOR Mitt Romney (Utah). Who was one of the most moderate republicans in the senate

This is so crazy

1. Most people assumed Biden would be too old in 2016, much less 2020

2. They wouldn't understand how Hillary isn't President

3. Democrats ran a platform painting Romney as a out of touch and far right conservative.

4. Romney did everything in his power to take out Obama/Biden in 2012. Them winning set the stage for Biden to win in 2020

Crazy

[Motorcity]

A major bipartisan victory like this is hard to come by, so I'm not sure why Democrats want to imperil its chances by tying it to a much more partisan package. They should just pass it now and worry about everything else later.

Because this bipartisan victory only covers a small fraction of what needs to be done (notably childcare and eldercare were left out because something something roads and bridges) and this is the only way to get to habitual traitors to go along.

Look

I would prefer Democrats put everything in reconciliation. And kill the filibuster. And Medicare for All.

But we don’t live in that world. It could be worst. David Perdue could have won 0.4% in November and killed any chance of anything for Democrats. Than a outright fascist wins in 2024.

We still need to deal with Manchin/Sinema. Give them what they want. Negotiations with Republicans. A bipartisan bill.

Than we pass the other stuff with reconciliation. Easy enough.

We still need them for the FY 2023 bill. We still need a public option. And student loan forgiveness and free college and teacher raises.

If appeasing a few moderate senates by spendings months talking will give us the largest agenda since the great society, so be it 

[Motorcity]

A major bipartisan victory like this is hard to come by, so I'm not sure why Democrats want to imperil its chances by tying it to a much more partisan package. They should just pass it now and worry about everything else later.

Because this bipartisan victory only covers a small fraction of what needs to be done (notably childcare and eldercare were left out because something something roads and bridges) and this is the only way to get to habitual traitors to go along.

Look

I would prefer Democrats put everything in reconciliation. And kill the filibuster. And Medicare for All.

But we don’t live in that world. It could be worst. David Perdue could have won 0.4% in November and killed any chance of anything for Democrats. Than a outright fascist wins in 2024.

We still need to deal with Manchin/Sinema. Give them what they want. Negotiations with Republicans. A bipartisan bill.

Um... that's what happened.

Than we pass the other stuff with reconciliation. Easy enough.

We still need them for the FY 2023 bill. We still need a public option. And student loan forgiveness and free college and teacher raises.

If appeasing a few moderate senates by spendings months talking will give us the largest agenda since the great society, so be it 

That's what... Biden wants to happen... And what everyone in here is advocating for.

Several posters are calling the deal garbage, not realizing everything else we want will be in reconciliation

[Motorcity]

Excellent strategy by Biden. Turns out that having an experienced prez really matters and that Biden has learned the lessons from 2009.

If the GOPers pull out because Mr. Turtleman tells them to or because they don't like the 2nd bill, Dems should just pack everything in a big bill and get it done with 50 votes. Manchin then has to realize his colleagues from the other side of the aisle weren't negotiating in good faith. Offer him extra funds for WV if that's what it takes to get his vote. This things needs to be get done.

The only problem with this is that the same thing could happen that happened with Republicans in 2017.

Everything Republicans did in 2017 and 2018 was unpopular. The tax cuts and Obamacare repeal is NOT what the American people want. Hence McCain oppossing it

Manchin knows the Democratic agenda is popular. He just has this weird boner for bipartisanship and is using his leveage as the 50th senator to get it

[Motorcity]

So has anyone bothered to ask him why? He just pulled a number out of his ass and I’m getting very sick of everything being held hostage by our dimmest people.

Calm down

The US passes a two trillion budget every year. The six billion budget had the normal budget, 2 trillion for infrastrucutre, and family care.

The infrastrucutre bill will probably be passed on it own. So the question is the FY 2022 bidget passed by reconcilation. If the bipartisan bill passes, we need 4 trillion

[Motorcity]

https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1412395909267132416

Unlikely

Democrats will have a three seat majority, which will be gone just by redistricting. Plus its a midterm so the presidents party will lose seats. Even if we minimized our seat loss by winning the national popular vote, I don't see how we can keep the majority

That said, if we ban gerrymandering than yes we can win. But I don't see Manchin/Sinema even changing the filibuster for voting rights

[Motorcity]

Schumer plans a vote on the bipartisan bill by the end of July, before August recess. He also plans for the senate to vote on the budget resoultion around the same time. The FY 2022 bill (reconcillation) probably won't pass until the Fall, but atleast progressives will have a blueprint and some idea where Manchin/Sinema currently stand

https://www.politico.com/news/2021/07/07/democrats-bipartisan-infrastrcture-bill-senate-498614

[Motorcity]

Question

Biden proposed a 6 trillion dollar budget, that doesn't inculde mandatory spending or interest payments

(The FY 2019 budget was 4.4 trillion. 2.73 trillion was mandatory spending and 350 billion was on interest payments)

Biden is asking for 1.5 discretionary funding, a big boost from Trump's 1.3 discretionary funding.

But Biden is also asking for a one time 1.8 trillion for families and 2.3 trillion for infrastrucutre, which would be spent over the next 5-10 years


Here is my question:

Biden has negioated with republicans to make the job plan to be 1.2 trillion, 579 billion is new funding. Where does the other 600 billion come from?

Thanks