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West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin III, a prominent centrist refractor, spoke on Thursday of the prospects of reaching agreement on a framework for a broad set of national and social policies, firmly holding a $ 1.5 trillion price tag that the Liberals called it too small.
Coming out late in the evening from a lengthy meeting with senior White House officials and Senator Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, Mr Manchin said: “I don’t see a deal tonight, really not.”
The comments highlighted how distant factions within the party were as they struggled to save both elements of President Biden’s sprawling economic agenda. On the day Congress united to pass a bill raising the government’s debt ceiling, divisions within the Democratic Party threatened its $ 1 trillion infrastructure bill as well as the bill. social spending law.
Hours after Mr Manchin confirmed he would support nothing more than $ 1.5 trillion in social spending – less than half of what the Liberals have asked for – efforts to craft a framework have yet to reached an agreement.
“I’m at $ 1.5 trillion – I think $ 1.5 trillion is doing exactly the things that need to be done,” he said. Ms. Sinema made no comment when she left the meeting.
Liberal House Democrats have so far refused to support a final vote on the $ 1 trillion bipartisan bill that Mr Manchin helped negotiate without voting on the broad domestic policy package spanning many their legislative ambitions. White House officials – Louisa Terrell, director of legislative affairs, Brian Deese, director of the National Economic Council and Susan Rice, director of the Home Policy Council – shuttled between meetings with the Democratic leaders and the two centrist refractories .
In a letter to her caucus Thursday night, Pelosi offered a few updates, but said “This has been a day of progress in realizing the President’s vision.”
“All of this momentum brings us closer to crafting the reconciliation bill in a way that will go through the House and the Senate,” she wrote. But she delayed the vote on the $ 1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill she pledged to bring to the House on Thursday.
External pressure was mounting on both sides of the entrenched debate. The AFL-CIO and other unions issued statements supporting the immediate passage of the bipartisan infrastructure bill, while grassroots organizations urged liberal lawmakers to “hold the line” and demand a reconciliation bill.
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