Stephanie Murphy slams Democrats for rushing bill onto Biden’s economic agenda



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It’s yet another sign of the precarious weeks ahead as Democrats rush to meet a self-imposed deadline to draft their human infrastructure bill by September 15.

After a series of partisan speeches in the House Ways and Means Committee, Murphy called on September 15, the day Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said they wanted a bill on the Democratic agenda to be drafted, an “artificial” deadline. motivated by politics, not politics. She also said that while she supports many of the provisions she has seen so far, with no indication of how the legislation will be paid for, she cannot assess it or make decisions on it. how to vote.

“We need more time,” Murphy said. “I don’t think it’s too much to ask to want to see this bill in its entirety before voting on any part of it.”

Murphy pledged to vote against every section of the bill in committee if she didn’t have a more complete view of the bill, but said she hoped to settle differences before a final vote on the floor.

While Democrats can push the legislation out of committee without Murphy’s backing, Schumer and Pelosi can’t afford to lose more votes in either chamber, given their tight leverage in Congress. Pelosi can only afford to lose 3 limbs. And Schumer can’t afford to lose a single one. Murphy is the last moderate Democrat to express frustration with the process, following Democratic Senator Joe Manchin who called for a “pause” on the budget bill in an op-ed last week.

The problem on Thursday was that the House Ways and Means Committee had not unveiled its full legislation, but was only releasing a fraction of the plan on many items that are much less controversial as they begin their markup today. ‘hui. The committee, for example, has yet to release a list of tax increases or ways to foot the bill, even as it prepares legislation to send to the prosecution. These aspects of the bill, which will likely include increases in the corporate tax rate as well as increases on the personal side, are expected to meet resistance from vested interests and Republicans who will embrace them midway through.

House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard Neal, a Democrat from Massachusetts, has been very suspicious for months about how he plans to fund the bill, and the infrastructure laws he has. proposals have always been published without remuneration. The reasoning is that publishing a long pay list is politically risky and opens the party to attacks on things that could possibly be taken out of the bill when it reaches the Senate. But, it’s still difficult for moderate members like Murphy to make a decision on how to vote without seeing the full rundown of what will ultimately be part of the proposal.

Murphy said she would vote no in the Ways and Means Committee’s Legislation Committee if she couldn’t get the full picture.

The warnings Murphy is now raising in committee come after she sent a letter with her moderate colleague, Representative Henry Cuellar of Texas, to Democratic leaders on Friday, raising the issues of what it would take for them to vote for the final reconciliation. invoice in general. If the Democratic leaders do not meet these needs, they risk losing the votes of Murphy and Cuellar, and they have only three votes to lose.

Among the issues Murphy and Cuellar asked Pelosi, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, and Majority Whip Jim Clyburn to address:

  • They want key spending and revenue provisions to be “pre-conference” with the Senate to ensure they can be passed by both houses.
  • They demanded that the bill be paid, except for its climatic provisions.
  • They asked members to have at least 72 hours to consider the bill before it goes to a vote in the House.

Murphy then tweeted: “My constituents expect me to review bills thoroughly and transparently.”

“While I support many provisions of the Build Back Better Act, my committee is rushing before we know exactly what’s in it, what it’s going to cost and how we’re going to pay for it,” she said. . wrote. “Without the full text of the ways and means portion of the bill, I simply cannot make an informed substantive decision. I am also frustrated that it was not pre-conference with the Senate. I will continue to work to bring this bill to a place where I can support it and it can become law. ”



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