Biden infrastructure/tax increase megathread

[Pericles]

That's a reasonable point overall but climate change really is a crisis that demands urgent action. If it can't get passed the other good stuff should should least be passed but not taking climate action will have dire consequences for the world.

[7,052,770]

That's a reasonable point overall but climate change really is a crisis that demands urgent action. If it can't get passed the other good stuff should should least be passed but not taking climate action will have dire consequences for the world.

Yeah, time to wrap this up and move on to an all-out blitz on voting rights and statehood. Get all those injustices fixed and hopefully make another shot at climate later in the term.

[It’s so Joever]

I don't know whether it's Trump or just social media in general but for some reason everyone's now acting like every single issue in America is a crisis that demands immediate, overwhelming force to solve, with zero regards for the future, and that politicians are the only people who have any agency to solve these problems.

No, the country is not going to collapse because your favorite agenda item didn't make it into this year's legislation.  People aren't going to starve and die without the latest and greatest welfare idea becoming law.  Biden's legislative climate agenda is not the tipping point between an eco-paradise and the flaming greenhouse apocalypse.

All of these policies are really good and would be really nice to have.  But it's not exactly unheard of for highly-ambitious legislation to get watered down in committee.  You may recall that the Republicans promised for seven years that they'd repeal Obamacare, and then when they got back in power the best they could do was repeal the individual mandate.

None of these things are immediate emergencies.  We can include them in other bills in the future.  The Biden Administration and state governments can take action on these issues without Congressional aid.  As can the private sector in many cases.  Change and progress are inevitable.  COVID was an immediate emergency and we got 100% of what we wanted in the ARPA.

So be happy with what we're getting.  It seems like it's still really good.  I'm as irritated as anyone at Manchin/Sinema yanking stuff out without much justification, but that's what a 1-vote majority is always going to entail.  Obamacare was the exact same way when we had a 1-vote supermajority and we spent like nine months arguing with a small handful of congressmen who kept wanting to yank stuff out or pull the plug entirely.  I think young people in particular don't remember the Obamacare fight so they're much more likely to freak out over this entire process.  In another 5-10 years we'll have another massive bill the Democrats have to negotiate for months to pass, and a new generation will be freaking out, and it'll be the zoomers saying "I remember the Manchin days, this is just how it goes."

The only immediate threat is the GOP turning this country into a right wing dictatorship over the next decade and a half, but that is near inevitable at this rate.

[Amenhotep Bakari-Sellers]

This spending bill is getting less and less and what happens in Sec 3rd when the Debt Ceiling runs out, we still don't have a lifting on the Debt, free college being dropped and tax cuts dropped from the package, it's a watered down bill

[Mr.Phips]

That's a reasonable point overall but climate change really is a crisis that demands urgent action. If it can't get passed the other good stuff should should least be passed but not taking climate action will have dire consequences for the world.

Yeah, time to wrap this up and move on to an all-out blitz on voting rights and statehood. Get all those injustices fixed and hopefully make another shot at climate later in the term.

Any climate change stuff is going to have to be done via executive order at this point.

[R.P. McM]

I feel like the apparent failure to pass the Build Back Better plan is kind of similar to Trump's failure to repeal Obamacare in 2017. Both were more or less signature promises POTUS wanted to done in the 1st year, but a narrow senate majority prevents it from happening. Both cause severe outrage at the base and leaves POTUS with declining approval ratings.

Only difference is that Obamacare repeal failed due to the GOP's lack of a real alternative (something they have failed to come up with ever since the ACA was passed) while BBB only fails due to 2 stubborn senators with an out of time and out of touch mindset.

What are you talking about?

The Build Back Better plan is on track to pass by Halloween

It will be a 2 trillion dollar investment in the safety net, largest since the Great Society. Passing it will be a huge success, not failure.

Paid leave, Medicaid expansion, Obamacare subsidiese, pre-k, child care

These are all popular with the base unlike Obamacare repeal. Even Republicans were wary of fulling repealing it, knowing thousands of stupid republicans actually get health insurance through Obamacare

Recent days more sounded like Manchin and Sinema don't care whether anything passes. I still consider it a disappointment to water everything down. 3.5 trillion was already a compromise and this proposals doesn't include more climate investments urgently needed.

Significant climate investments are not happening.  Accept that.

I have. Not at the federal level, anyhow. And I've also concluded that the people of my state are no longer obligated to fund the natural disaster relief efforts of WV, AZ, the Gulf states, etc. Fair? At the very least, we shouldn't be subsidizing future condominium reefs in Miami without aggressive climate change legislation attached. Republicans are free to block it, but that just means no more bailouts for New Orleans, Houston, etc. They've made their choice; I shouldn't be expected to save them from their own stupidity.

[Vaccinated Russian Bear]

I don't know whether it's Trump or just social media in general but for some reason everyone's now acting like every single issue in America is a crisis that demands immediate, overwhelming force to solve, with zero regards for the future, and that politicians are the only people who have any agency to solve these problems.

No, the country is not going to collapse because your favorite agenda item didn't make it into this year's legislation.  People aren't going to starve and die without the latest and greatest welfare idea becoming law.  Biden's legislative climate agenda is not the tipping point between an eco-paradise and the flaming greenhouse apocalypse.

All of these policies are really good and would be really nice to have.  But it's not exactly unheard of for highly-ambitious legislation to get watered down in committee.  You may recall that the Republicans promised for seven years that they'd repeal Obamacare, and then when they got back in power the best they could do was repeal the individual mandate.

None of these things are immediate emergencies.  We can include them in other bills in the future.  The Biden Administration and state governments can take action on these issues without Congressional aid.  As can the private sector in many cases.  Change and progress are inevitable.  COVID was an immediate emergency and we got 100% of what we wanted in the ARPA.

So be happy with what we're getting.  It seems like it's still really good.  I'm as irritated as anyone at Manchin/Sinema yanking stuff out without much justification, but that's what a 1-vote majority is always going to entail.  Obamacare was the exact same way when we had a 1-vote supermajority and we spent like nine months arguing with a small handful of congressmen who kept wanting to yank stuff out or pull the plug entirely.  I think young people in particular don't remember the Obamacare fight so they're much more likely to freak out over this entire process.  In another 5-10 years we'll have another massive bill the Democrats have to negotiate for months to pass, and a new generation will be freaking out, and it'll be the zoomers saying "I remember the Manchin days, this is just how it goes."

Not that I disagree with your points, but you, writing such a big post just, because 3-4 idiots here say, it's a disaster, reminds me this on

https://twitter.com/theonion/status/1389997838743056388


Btw, personally I think, that Biden would be better off electorally (esp midterms), had he pushed for BIP in August and get reconciliation later. Manchin kinda [not really] promised 1.5T, and now they are talking about 1.9T. Not big diff, imo, and they probably could get him to 1.9T anyways. Though, purely speculating, haha. Pelosi knows best!

[Pres Mike]

I don't know whether it's Trump or just social media in general but for some reason everyone's now acting like every single issue in America is a crisis that demands immediate, overwhelming force to solve, with zero regards for the future, and that politicians are the only people who have any agency to solve these problems.

No, the country is not going to collapse because your favorite agenda item didn't make it into this year's legislation.  People aren't going to starve and die without the latest and greatest welfare idea becoming law.  Biden's legislative climate agenda is not the tipping point between an eco-paradise and the flaming greenhouse apocalypse.

All of these policies are really good and would be really nice to have.  But it's not exactly unheard of for highly-ambitious legislation to get watered down in committee.  You may recall that the Republicans promised for seven years that they'd repeal Obamacare, and then when they got back in power the best they could do was repeal the individual mandate.

None of these things are immediate emergencies.  We can include them in other bills in the future.  The Biden Administration and state governments can take action on these issues without Congressional aid.  As can the private sector in many cases.  Change and progress are inevitable.  COVID was an immediate emergency and we got 100% of what we wanted in the ARPA.

So be happy with what we're getting.  It seems like it's still really good.  I'm as irritated as anyone at Manchin/Sinema yanking stuff out without much justification, but that's what a 1-vote majority is always going to entail.  Obamacare was the exact same way when we had a 1-vote supermajority and we spent like nine months arguing with a small handful of congressmen who kept wanting to yank stuff out or pull the plug entirely.  I think young people in particular don't remember the Obamacare fight so they're much more likely to freak out over this entire process.  In another 5-10 years we'll have another massive bill the Democrats have to negotiate for months to pass, and a new generation will be freaking out, and it'll be the zoomers saying "I remember the Manchin days, this is just how it goes."

Not that I disagree with your points, but you, writing such a big post just, because 3-4 idiots here say, it's a disaster, reminds me this on

https://twitter.com/theonion/status/1389997838743056388

Btw, personally I think, that Biden would be better off electorally (esp midterms), had he pushed for BIP in August and get reconciliation later. Manchin kinda [not really] promised 1.5T, and now they are talking about 1.9T. Not big diff, imo, and they probably could get him to 1.9T anyways. Though, purely speculating, haha. Pelosi knows best!

I disagree. I do think Manchin would have committed to 1.5 trillion even if BIF had passed back in august. But Sinema is the wild card. I do think of BIF had passed in august she would have not voted for anything in BBB. Zero

What I do think was a mistake was Pelosi/Schumer allowing the august recess. I know Sinema straight out told leadership she would be AWOL in august regardless if government was in session. But I would have been writing the bill with Manchin and had Sinema look at it when she came back from her Europe vacation

Purple hair bitc

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

https://twitter.com/Kevinliptakcnn/status/1451344474458804229
https://twitter.com/mkraju/status/1451354718790471682
Who's the third?

Warner or Feinstein probably.

[Bootes Void]

hey so when is this thing getting passed? I have been hearing close to a deal for like 3 months now

[Pres Mike]

hey so when is this thing getting passed? I have been hearing close to a deal for like 3 months now

Congressional leadership is hoping for everyone to agree on a framework. Once all 50 senators are on record to support 1.9-2.2 trillion, hopefully progressives will support BIF

BIF passes by Halloween when a lot of current transportation funding expires and BBB passes sometime in November after it’s done being written.

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

hey so when is this thing getting passed? I have been hearing close to a deal for like 3 months now

Hoyer wants both bills to pass this month. We'll see if it happens.

[Progressive Pessimist]

This bill is an insult. The Democrats will reap what they sow come midterms.

Buck up. The American Rescue, infrastructure, and BBB combine to be, what, 4-5 times bigger than the 2009 stimulus? And that was a really big deal at the time.

We still have 14 months (hopefully more) to control Congress and keep fighting for everything that didn't make it in.

Yeah, this is where I'm at too.

While it would have been nice, obviously, to have a more ideal bill with climate change action and less watered down versions of programs, among other things; it is still a significant bill. Having even four weeks of federal paid leave is heads-and-tails above not having it all. And it will make a positive impact in the lives of Americans. And if the tangible effects are felt, perhaps Americans will give Democrats the opportunity, through actually rewarding them in elections, to expand these programs once they become popular. It's much like what we saw with the Affordable Act. I would just hope that the programs don't start off being negatively perceived and then take as long to become popular.

I'm being uncharacteristically idealistic here, perhaps; but after all this hubbub, passing the two bills at all now seems like a miracle, all in all. And it at least can finally let the party move on to other things-hopefully voting rights. Though that is potentially going to be like pulling teeth too...

[Matty]

https://mobile.twitter.com/heatherscope/status/1452068538454265857

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

This is getting ridiculous. Schumer needs to just tell Manchin to shut up and vote yes or he loses his committee chairmanship. Why that action has not been taken yet is beyond me.

[NOVA Green]

This is getting ridiculous. Schumer needs to just tell Manchin to shut up and vote yes or he loses his committee chairmanship. Why that action has not been taken yet is beyond me.

Getting to the point where this getting so watered down for the "Road Lobby", "Big Pharma", and "Big Oil", and "Pro-Rich Crowd", where I am have tempted to tell Wyden and Merkley to vote against, as well as my current Congressional Rep Peter DeFazio.

Bcs of most likely changed precinct results, will be in a Schrader CD next year, and hopefully we can get a good recruit to primary his a$$ for opposing the Presidents agenda.

[Attorney General & PPT Dwarven Dragon]

This is getting ridiculous. Schumer needs to just tell Manchin to shut up and vote yes or he loses his committee chairmanship. Why that action has not been taken yet is beyond me.

Getting to the point where this getting so watered down for the "Road Lobby", "Big Pharma", and "Big Oil", and "Pro-Rich Crowd", where I am have tempted to tell Wyden and Merkley to vote against, as well as my current Congressional Rep Peter DeFazio.

Bcs of most likely changed precinct results, will be in a Schrader CD next year, and hopefully we can get a good recruit to primary his a$$ for opposing the Presidents agenda.

It's not even watering it down for those groups in and of themselves, it's watering it down for one guy from West Virginia who needs a good flogging. It's just sickening.

[Frodo]

https://mobile.twitter.com/heatherscope/status/1452068538454265857

I am okay with leaving Medicare expansion out of the reconciliation bill and saving it for our next trifecta -eventually we are going to need to ensure the solvency of Social Security and Medicare early in the 2030s, and that by necessity will be our first priority.  I prefer that any expansions or alterations of those programs need to be done together.  

[CookieDamage]

https://mobile.twitter.com/heatherscope/status/1452068538454265857

I am okay with leaving Medicare expansion out of the reconciliation bill and saving it for our next trifecta -eventually we are going to need to ensure the solvency of Social Security and Medicare early in the 2030s, and that by necessity will be our first priority.  I prefer that any expansions or alterations of those programs need to be done together.  

Whats gonna even be in the bill then?

- No paid leave
- No Medicare expansion
- No free community College
- No signature climate policy

[Frodo]

https://mobile.twitter.com/heatherscope/status/1452068538454265857

I am okay with leaving Medicare expansion out of the reconciliation bill and saving it for our next trifecta -eventually we are going to need to ensure the solvency of Social Security and Medicare early in the 2030s, and that by necessity will be our first priority.  I prefer that any expansions or alterations of those programs need to be done together.  

Whats gonna even be in the bill then?

- No paid leave
- No Medicare expansion
- No free community College
- No signature climate policy

Everything else. 

[jojoju1998]

Somehow Pre K and Childcare made it through.

I actually thought that Manchin and Sinema would oppose Pre K and Childcare before Paid leave and Medicare expansion.

[Matty]

Somehow Pre K and Childcare made it through.

I actually thought that Manchin and Sinema would oppose Pre K and Childcare before Paid leave and Medicare expansion.

the thing about pre k is that most states already offer it for free. childcare is a bigger deal, but I am seeing chatter from people like matt bruenig that the way it is being devised is bad news.

[I Will Not Be Wrong]

https://thehill.com/homenews/senate/578172-sanders-on-medicare-expansion-in-spending-package-its-not-coming-out.

Bernie is not backing down on Medicare Expansion.

[Pericles]

Is there anything on expanding sick leave? Presuming that hasn't been done already, that should be included. Covid shows that if people don't have the financial support to stay home when ill, that costs lives and also harms the economy.

[politicallefty]

We've already given up free community college and major climate change policy reforms and reduced the child tax credit extension to a single year. Are they trying to reduce the price tag below a trillion or something? Seriously, wtf? The Medicare expansion could be modified in some ways, but should be not be given up. Giving up the paid leave benefit should be a nonstarter. It's bad enough I've heard they wanted to reduce it from 12 weeks to 4 weeks. If I were in Congress, I wouldn't go for this and I would vote against the bipartisan deal. I can be pragmatic, but they're taking way too much now. The only thing that has become painfully clear to me is that the federal government is completely incapable of passing long-standing legislation to better the lives of the average American. It's beyond belief that this is happening when we have right-wing authoritarianism right outside the door and about to bust in.

Is there anything on expanding sick leave? Presuming that hasn't been done already, that should be included. Covid shows that if people don't have the financial support to stay home when ill, that costs lives and also harms the economy.

It's not even true sick pay, like every other country has (not to mention vacation pay). This is all just catch-up to what the rest of the industrialized world has. The paid leave benefit is designed for extended leave at 85% pay. It would build beyond the FMLA, which only guarantees unpaid leave (i.e. job protection). There's still no federal guarantee for workers that have acute illness and need a day or so off work (such as taking a couple days off because you have the flu). No, you're generally expected to go to work.