WV Joe Does a Deal, I Think

 

We’ve gotten used to Senator Joe Manchin and his penchant for deals and bi-partisanship, which he has persisted in pursuing, although he could not find ten Republicans to go along with most of his proposals. So, as he walked away last year, from Build Back Better (BBB), in a fit of pique, Democrats were unhappy, to say the least. (Manchin, to his credit, had given Leader Schumer a list of what he would accept, but Schumer did not share that with members of his party, apparently hoping that he could change Manchins’ mind over the months ahead.) The Biden administration and many Democrats felt betrayed when he could not agree to the multi-tiered and hugely expensive BBB proposals. Earlier this summer, he spoke about the funding plans headed for Reconciliation and claimed that they would increase inflation. Democrats shook their heads yet again and wondered what to do with their problem Senator, not to mention his quixotic sidekick, Senator Sinema. Neither would concede to Democratic pleas to put aside the filibuster for voting rights changes, despite the statement that they agreed with most of the legislation, which Manchin helped write and now once again he was intransigent.

So, Democrats cannot be blamed, if this week they felt a bit like Charlie Brown waiting yet again to kick the football for victory, only to have Lucy pull it away from his uplifted foot.

However, with encouragement from his peers, and months of secret negotiations again with Schumer, the two have reached a deal on funding the ambitious climate bill so dear to the Biden Administration and most Democrats. In it are concessions that Manchin wanted for his pet oil and gas projects, some off-shore drilling, and pipelines. However, it also funds expanded wind farms, domestic solar industries, and rebates for electric vehicles (even used ones!), some of which might be built in West Virginia to enhance areas where coal mines are no longer viable. These are projects close to Manchins’ hopes for his home state. Some have said that there are more former coal miners in WV than current miners and note that these alternative industries will ultimately hasten the demise of the coal industry. Senator Manchin and his family derive much of their income from the coal industry. We also know Manchin as one of the biggest recipients of campaign funds from the fossil fuel industries.

The environmental measures in this historic climate bill should help the United States move closer to climate control goals such as lower emissions. The stated goals have been to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40% below 2005 levels by 2030. While environmentalists are not happy with extending drilling, they applaud the additional incentives to move away from fossil fuels. Manish Bapta, President of the Natural Resources Defense Council, quoted in the New York Times about these proposals, said:

“his group’s internal modeling showed that the emissions cuts from the legislation would be as much as 10 times greater than the effects from the support it extends to fossil fuels. He called the fossil fuel provisions “pain points” but said overall the deal was “significantly positive.”

 

It is interesting to note that this deal was done in the Senate and did not involve the White House, which is probably a good thing since relations between Biden and Manchin have not been the best, since he tanked the original BBB, which was so pivotal to the White House's climate plan. Also, it should be noted, that some of the pet provisions that were in the original plan are no longer in this new bill, now dubbed the Inflation Reduction Act. Gone is the expanded Child Tax Credit (CTC) as Manchin believed the families would spend the funds on drugs, not necessities for children. That claim was not borne out by the credits received during 2021. In fact, in a study reported by The Brookings Institute, families used the funds for the following purposes:

The most common reported uses for the CTC were: routine expenses such as housing and utilities (70 percent) clothing or other essential items for children (58 percent) purchasing more food for the family (56 percent) saving for emergencies (49 percent) or paying off debt (42 percent).

The report further noted that the result was unprecedented in its scope, as in a few short months, it lifted 3.7 million children out of poverty simply by supplying modest monthly payments for each child in a household.

As described further by the Center for American Progress, the bill allows Medicare (CMS) to negotiate with drug companies on the prices for some drugs; these provisions will be phased in over several years, with ten drugs initially, then 20 the next year and so forth. It also caps out-of-pocket costs for Medicare beneficiaries at $2000.00 per year. It extended subsidies under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) for three more years. Without that extension, Insurance Companies could have raised the fees several times above current levels, making the ACA essentially no longer affordable for many participants. It did not expand Medicaid, which the President had wanted to do to cover those in states that refused to allow this. Some of the social issues, so important to Progressive Democrats and the young, such as funding for child care, elder care, and funds for preschool, are not included. The revised bill does not reduce college loans or pay them off, nor does it allow for free community college; the proposal that brought many young people to support Biden. Biden is still considering what he can do in this area by executive orders and is perhaps considering a means test of some form.

Rebate incentives for electric vehicles, even used ones, are included. There are also energy rebates for making homes more energy efficient. With additional subsidies for moving industries back to the U.S., they expected to help reduce the supply chain issues. (The CHIPS Bill which just passed in a bi-partisan manner is not a part of this bill, but will prop up more domestic manufacturing of the tiny semi-conductors now integral to multiple industries.)

On the revenue side, some taxes and fees are added. There is a minimum corporate income tax of 15% since so many corporations find loopholes to avoid paying any taxes. No tax increases will affect earners making under $400,000 a year. They expect more revenue through better IRS enforcement and closing the carried interest loophole. While many coastal states with high home costs wanted the DJT era cap on homeowner’s real estate Tax (SALT) deductions removed, this was not included.

So, now the Bill goes to the Senate for a vote, then returns to the House for its considerations. I expect it will pass with only the 50 Democrats voting in favor since it is under “reconciliation”; Senator Sinema has not spoken publicly about her support or lack of support on this, but I, along with many others, hope that she makes her way to get to yes from the climate measures in the bill. Some Progressives in the House have been reserved in their responses, but I certainly hope that they can vote yes and make this important legislation happen. Interestingly, Senate Republicans, who were blind-sided by this supposed legislative turnaround, are refusing to support it and have also voted down a bill they previously voted for that would support Veterans harmed by the burn pits from the Middle East Wars. Media Star Jon Stewart was on Capitol Hill last week calling them out for such small-minded actions.

This week I have been reading a book by NY Times reporters Jonathan Martin and Alexander Burns: “This will not Pass- Trump, Biden and the Battle for America’s Future.”

There are many very interesting discussions and much new reporting in this book. But to address the topic for tonight, I will mention one new episode (on page 273) that I was unaware of. Amid all the BBB turmoil, Republican Senators Susan Collins, John Thune, and Rob Portman took Senator Manchin to dinner and tried to convince him to defect from the Democratic Party. They said he could just become an Independent and caucus with the Republicans; they would help him raise money, allow him to chair a committee, whatever he wanted. He declined as he said he was unwilling to allow Mitch McConnell to again become Leader. But, as the authors explained, Manchin considers himself very much a Democrat and party member in good standing; he is just a conservative Democrat.

Many have complained that both parties have hollowed out their middles, leaving only those with extreme views among those left standing. To have a well-grounded party, many views need to be represented. As a Progressive, I have found fault with Senator Manchin many times, but I also do not always agree with my more progressive friends on every issue. But that is where compromise comes into play. This appears to have happened with the Inflation Reduction Act. This is what so seldom seems to happen in Congress, in our State Houses, and at the Supreme Court.

Lord Action, writing in 1887, noted that the same moral standards should apply to all ‘men’ and repeated his belief that “power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts (all men) absolutely.”

Did the Supreme Court go past the requested ruling on Dobbs to revoke Roe, just because they had the numbers to do so, rather than stand with precedent?

Did the Texas legislature pass permit-less open carry because they could do so, despite having more school shootings than any other state?

Did the Georgia legislature pass restrictive voting laws because they had a supermajority, not because the laws needed changing?

Did Governor DeSantis promote anti-mask-wearing, anti-covid measures because he believed in them or because he thought it would pump up his base, despite having high in-state levels of illness and a population that skewed older?

We need to return to governments across all states that are really representative and work morally for all of our people.

“Til next week-Peace!