The Biden administration will continue outreach to West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin in order to hopefully pass the president’s sweeping social and climate spending bill through the Senate in 2022, the White House spokeswoman said Monday, one day after the senator reversed course by saying he would not vote for the bill.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the president “absolutely” wants to work with Sen. Manchin and other Democrats to move the bill forward, noting that the president’s biggest concern was the “risk of inaction.”
“The fight for Build Back Better is too important to give up. We will find a way to move forward next year,” Psaki said from the White House briefing room. “We absolutely want to work with Senator Manchin and all Democrats to get this done.”
Sen. Manchin all but delivered a death blow to President Joe Biden’s $2 trillion domestic initiative on Sunday, telling Fox News that he always has made clear he had reservations about the legislation and that now, after five-and-half months of discussions and negotiations, “I cannot vote to continue with this piece of legislation.”
While Manchin’s choice of words suggested an openness to continuing talks, he all but said the bill would die unless it was reshaped to his terms.
Psaki on Monday noted that the president and Manchin were longtime friends and had worked together for decades.
“They share fundamental values,” she said. “[The president is] no stranger to legislative challenges, and we are going to continue to take steps [and] work like hell to get it done.”
Psaki on Sunday had issued an unusually confrontational response to the senator whose vote is crucial, calling Manchin’s comments “a sudden and inexplicable reversal in his position” and “a breach of his commitments” to Biden and congressional Democrats.
She referred back to her statement several times on Monday, calling it a “factual depiction”of events.
Responding to an outcry from fellow Democrats, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said early Monday that the Senate would vote in the new year — and keep voting on Biden’s big initiative “until we get something done.”
“We simply cannot give up,” Schumer said in a letter to colleagues.
In a radio interview Monday, Manchin reiterated his views when asked if there is still room for him in the party.
“I would like to hope that there are still Democrats that feel like I do. Like I said, I’m socially and fiscally responsible and socially compassionate,” he said.
Manchin added: “Now, if there’s no Democrats like that then they have to push me wherever they want.”
He also told West Virginia MetroNews that the White House knew the “real reason” he came to his decision on the vote, not providing details but noting the issue is with White House staff, not Biden.
Psaki did not respond when asked about Manchin’s reasoning and references to staff on Monday.
Meanwhile, the Washington Post reported that the West Virginia Senator had presented a $1.8 trillion counter proposal that did not include the expanded Child Tax Credit, monthly payments for certain families passed under the COVID relief bill and a staple of Biden’s economic agenda.
Also in response to Manchin on Monday, Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., called on President Biden to depart from legislative solutions to the policies in the BBB bill and turn to executive orders, saying he should “keep his promise to us and to the American people by using the ultimate tool in his toolbox — the tool of executive actions in every arena, immediately.”
The legislation’s apparent collapse is sure to deepen the bitter ideological divisions within the Democratic Party between progressives and moderates. That would call into question whether Democrats will be able to join together behind any substantial legislation before the November congressional elections. And it adds a note of chaos just as Democrats need to demonstrate accomplishments and show a united front before the fall campaign.
The bill carries huge investments for helping millions of families with children, including extending a more generous child tax credit, creating free preschool and bolstering child care aid. There’s assistance to help people pay health care costs, new hearing benefits for Medicare recipients and provisions limiting price increases on prescription drugs.
Also included are funds for caring for the elderly, housing, job training and more than $500 billion for tax breaks and spending aimed at curbing climate change. Nearly all of it would be paid for with higher taxes on the wealthy and large corporations.
