Sen. Joe Manchin of the US Democratic Party, who has always been a political thorn in the White House’s side, recently shocked Washington by declaring spontaneous support for President Joe Biden’s top agenda item.
Joe Manchin claims he now supports legislation to increase corporate taxes, combat climate change, and reduce the cost of prescription drugs.
The West Virginian has previously voiced opposition to the measure , expressing worries that increased expenditure may drive inflation.
A huge legislative success for Mr. Biden would be the bill’s passage.
Holding onto power in Congress
Retaining control of Congress as the November midterm elections approach by preserving a crucial component of his domestic program might also provide his fellow Democrats the much-needed political lift they need.
The law would allocate $369 billion to climate policy, including tax subsidies for electric cars, wind turbines, and solar panels, as well as address the effects of pollution on low-income neighborhoods.
By far, Mr. Schumer declared in a statement, “This measure will be the biggest pro-climate legislation that Congress has ever approved.”
The measure, according to Mr. Manchin and Mr. Schumer, would raise $739 billion (£608 billion) over the course of a decade by increasing the corporate minimum tax on large corporations to 15%, strengthening Internal Revenue Service tax enforcement, and allowing the government to bargain for lower prices on prescription drugs.
To get the measure through the Senate and deliver it to the House of Representatives, where Democrats have a narrow majority, President Biden needs the backing of all 50 Democratic senators as well as Vice President Kamala Harris’s tie-breaking vote.
The bill would be a big triumph if it were to pass
If enacted, the measure would be a significant victory for the president since it would formalize many of his main policy objectives and promise to revive the domestic economic agenda that has recently stagnated due to broken negotiations.
The package is still well short of what the White House had planned to accomplish with its initial $1.9 trillion Build Back Better agenda, an ambitious plan to completely restructure the US’s tax, health, and education systems.
According to Mr. Manchin on Wednesday, the earlier plan, which has been stalled in the Senate for months with an unknown future, is now “dead.”
Unexpected change of heart by a West Virginia senator
It’s unclear what precipitated the West Virginia senator’s abrupt change of heart and support for the new legislation. He represents a conservative state that heavily backed the previous president, Donald Trump, making him somewhat of a political outlier.
The 74-year-old’s test result was positive earlier this week. The senator tweeted that he was having slight symptoms despite being properly immunized.
Just a few days prior, the senator infuriated the White House by claiming that he could only support the parts of the package that dealt with healthcare subsidies and pharmaceutical costs.
On Wednesday night, Mr. Manchin stated, “I have assiduously sought to obtain feedback from all sides.”
According to US media reports, Ms. Sinema told Arizona business leaders in April that she “remains opposed to hiking the corporate minimum tax rate.”
Republicans criticized Mr. Manchin, who they had previously courted as a potential member.
Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina remarked, “I can’t believe that Senator Manchin is consenting to a big tax hike in the name of climate change while our economy is in a recession.”
Next week, according to Mr. Schumer, the Senate will consider the bill. Later in August, the House of Representatives may potentially take it up.
