- Manchin has thrown
Democrats ' spending plans into flux again, two Democratic sources tell Insider. - Manchin said he wouldn't support a spending bill including new climate spending or tax hikes.
Sen.
The lawmaker told top Democrats on Thursday that he would not support an economic package that includes new climate change spending or tax increases to finance the legislation, two Democrats briefed on the discussions confirmed to Insider. The development was first reported by The Washington Post.
It comes after days after federal data indicated inflation in June had reached its highest level in four decades. Prices continued spiking for groceries, gasoline, electricity and rent.
Senate Democrats had already begun reviving parts of their sidelined economic agenda with Manchin's apparent support after sinking the sprawling $2 trillion House-approved
"Political headlines are of no value to the millions of Americans struggling to afford groceries and gas as inflation soars to 9.1%," Manchin spokesperson Sam Runyon said in a statement. "Senator Manchin believes it's time for leaders to put political agendas aside, reevaluate and adjust to the economic realities the country faces to avoid taking steps that add fuel to the inflation fire."
Democrats in recent months have been working to regain Manchin's support in an effort to pass Biden's economic agenda before the midterms. But several early agreements between the powerful moderate and his party are now at risk of being upended by Manchin's refusal to budge on climate spending. Those deals included a measure to slash prescription drug pricing and taxing some high-earners to extend Medicare's lifespan by three years — he withdrew his backing for the latter measure, the sources said.
Manchin had voiced support in the past to raise taxes on richer Americans and transition the US onto greener energy sources. The development on Thursday night seemed to stun Democrats who believed they were making headway on cutting a deal with the conservative West Virginia Democrat after a lengthy stalemate on advancing their economic ambitions.
"This is our last chance to prevent the most catastrophic—and costly—effects of climate change," Senate Finance Chair Ron Wyden of Oregon said in a statement. "We can't come back in another decade and forestall hundreds of billions—if not trillions—in economic damage and undo the inevitable human toll."
Others like Sens. Brian Schatz of Hawaii and Jeff Merkeley of Oregon urged the Biden administration to wield its executive authority to address climate. "President Biden must immediately use the full scope of his executive powers to address climate chaos, starting by declaring a climate emergency," Merkeley wrote on Twitter.
The conservative Democrat's resistance means the US is bound to miss Biden's goal of slashing emissions in half by the end of the decade. That initiative was meant to restrain global warming at 1.5 degrees Celsius compared to preindustrial levels.
"Senator Manchin has condemned his own grandchildren to a broken planet. His actions will be recorded in the fossil record for centuries to come," Leah Stokes, an environmental policy professor at the University of California Santa Barbara, wrote on Twitter. "What sounds like hyperbole is sadly a fact. We cannot meet our climate goals without action from Congress."
Manchin signaled he remained open to Democrats' proposed measure that would slash prescription drug prices and extend two years of enhanced Affordable Care Act subsidies set to expire at the end of the year, the Democratic sources said. Such a bill would likely encompass only a small fraction of the original spending envisioned by Democrats — and it may prompt progressives to grow squeamish about taking the deal.
"We've got to get a climate deal," Rep. Ro Khanna of California, a prominent liberal, told Insider earlier on Thursday. "I think what the progressives definitely want is a climate deal."
Democrats aim to pass the measure using the intricate reconciliation process — a maneuver allowing Democrats to circumvent a Republican filibuster and approve bills with a simple majority vote.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer had been meeting with Manchin privately since late April in an effort to iron out disagreements and cut a deal with the holdout.
Now Democrats face a choice of accepting the skinny Manchin deal or abandoning it entirely after a year of chaotic negotiations that diminished the size and scope of the House-approved Build Back Better bill.
Their proposals to provide monthly cash payments to parents, establish universal pre-K and affordable childcare, expand Medicare to cover dental, vision, and hearing, and set up a paid leave program all fell out last year.