Joe Biden is president, but he isn’t king, so he has to play ball with Congress to get his promised agenda into action. With a majority in the House and control of the Senate, one would think Biden wouldn’t have much trouble passing that agenda.
That hasn’t been the case, Biden’s flagship proposed legislation “Build Back Better” seems to have no way forward. U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) is the roadblock to passing the massive social spending bill. He told the Biden Administration decidedly at the end of December that he was a no on the massive spending bill. Now even his $1.8 trillion dollar spending package is off the table.
On Tuesday, Manchin told reporters that he was no longer in discussions with The White House about the Build Back Better stating, “There’s no negotiations going on at this time”. According to sources close to Manchin, he is no longer interested in approving any legislation similar to Biden’s Build Back Better Package.
Progressive Democrats are begging the president to enact portions of the bill under an executive order. Chairwoman of the progressive caucus, Representative Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), wrote an op-ed in the Washington Post in which she calls upon Biden to take Executive action in response to Manchin’s No on Build Back Better.
“We are calling on the president to use executive action to immediately improve people’s lives,” she wrote.
Jayapal declared that if Manchin won’t work with us then we need to show him with, “taking executive action will also make clear to those who hinder Build Back Better that the White House and Democrats will deliver for Americans.”
The Congressional Progressive Caucus even has a plan for Biden to put these in action. Jayapal wrote, “The CPC will soon release a plan for these actions, including lowering costs, protecting the health of every family, and showing the world that the United States is serious about our leadership on climate action.”
Kamala Harris was asked “who is the real president, Manchin or Biden?” by the host of “Tha God’s Honest Truth” Charlemagne Tha God, while the negotiations on Build Back Better were still going on. Harris was not enthused with the question and retorted, “C’mon Charlamagne. C’mon, it’s Joe Biden”. Flustered by the question she then said, No, no, no, no. It’s Joe Biden. It’s Joe Biden. And don’t start talking like a Republican about asking whether or not he’s president, it’s Joe Biden and I’m vice president. My name is Kamala Harris.”
Build Back Better has been pushed as flagship legislation by the Biden Administration. Biden’s inability to get the legislation passed in both the House and Senate with a majority in both appears to many as an embarrassment for his presidency.
It appears at this time that Build Back Better won’t be part of Biden’s first State of the Union Address which is set for March 1st.
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