Posted on 04/05/2021 7:59:58 PM PDT by SeekAndFind

JOE MANCHIN
Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) is flexing his power once again in the closely divided Senate.
Joe Biden is trying to push through a massively expensive $2.3 trillion infrastructure bill, which is mostly not infrastructure, but a bill chockfull of Democratic agenda items.
Manchin is now making it clear that he is not on board with the bill as presently written, that he opposes the bill’s increase in the corporate tax rate from 21% to 28%, saying that it was too high and would hurt American competitiveness. He’s also saying he’s not the only one having problems with the bill.
So even if Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) tries to use budget reconciliation to get the bill through to bypass the 60 vote threshold, the Democrats would still need 51 votes and Manchin.
“If I don’t vote to get on it, then it’s not going anywhere, so we’re going to have some leverage here,” Manchin said. “It’s more than just me. There’s six or seven other Democrats who feel very strongly about this. We have to be competitive, and we’re not going to throw caution to the wind.”
Jen Psaki got all huffy when told about Manchin’s comments, trying to suggest that some actually thought the massive bill was “too small.” Sorry, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) doesn’t count, she thinks money grows on trees.
“The president felt it was responsible to propose a way to pay for his proposals,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday when asked about Manchin’s comments. “That’s exactly what he did. He knows some members think it’s too big, some think it’s too small…We fully expect that from Sen. Manchin and other members. We expect the question of how to pay for the package, if we should pay for the package, to be part of the disussion. We’re open to hearing ideas.”
So right now without Manchin and what sounds like a small coterie of other Democrats, they don’t have the votes and this effort is dead in the water. That said, there’s still a lot of other horrible things in the bill and the concern would be if Biden brings down the corporate tax number could he buy off the folks who are hesitant now? How about an infrastructure bill that’s actually about infrastructure and isn’t just one more bill to consolidate Democrats’ power? That seems to be the point of every bill now, under the cover of allegedly noble intent.
Is Manchin being sincere, or is he holding out for well-paid jobs for more of his family?
I don’t think Manchin is alone on this issue.
I don’t sense any hyped-up nature or thrill-factor going on. This is not like the Obama health care business...it’s just not selling that well to the public.
Manchin is making sure West Virginia is going to benefit.
He’ll vote with the rest of the rats as soon as he’s promised his payoff. So will the rest of them.
BS - Manchineel will fall in line when Schumer tells him to.
Manchin.
How did spellcheck come up with Manchineel?
Maybe he’s hoping Biden will give his wife that he bought off more dough
The *real* power here is in the hands of the plumber or other workman, who will begin to ask more and more for his/her efforts so as to sustain quality of life. Those who suffer most will be those depending largely on social security.
He’ll vote for it.
You know what makes me furious is that Trump had a real infrastructure bill that we would be reaping the benefits of it right now had the Dems and RINOS worked with him instead of accusing him of being Putin’s tool every 5 minutes.
Remember those happy days when the last W bush budget ( written by pelosi and signed by obama ) had a measly half trillion dollar defict?
Sorry, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) doesn’t count, she thinks money grows on trees.
Yep, I remember she once said something to the effect, that you “just pay for it”, I think in relation to Medicare for All. She said you just pay for it, you don’t think in terms of the budget, or appropriating money for things. No, you “just pay for it”.
Manchin is still for increasing business taxes, just not as much as Biden wants. Business taxes are paid by consumers, so that can be considered taxing the poorest of Americans. Manchin is nothing more than a tax and spend Democrat piece of schiff.
Manchin is signaling that appointing his wife to co-chair the Appalachian board last month isn’t enough. His friends and family are going to need some sweet “infrastructure” contracts and maybe a few “favors”.
He can be bought for 2¢ . . . He’s a Demorat!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.