A fellow Joe to be the biggest hurdle towards a cohesive social package might not be in president Biden’s list of oppositions to tackle, but alas, it is true. Majorly centrist Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin has been on the fence about the Build Back Better Act proposed by Biden and several Democratic senate members, to put it lightly, and that bold and unflinching opposition continues, as confirmed by Manchin himself.
In his most recent media appearance, Sen. Joe Manchin told reporters he has no plans to budge on the almost $2 Trillion social and environment relief package as it is, but he is open to discussions. He explicitly confirmed that no negotiations are ongoing with the White House, but there could be potential talks as Democrats scramble to pass the bill in the Senate.
His exact words have been, “I feel as strongly today as I did then,” while Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said “the stakes are high for us to find common ground,” and it is vital for Democrats to “keep working until we get something done,” while also confirming that the current weeks will be focused on voting rights legislation, holding this bill and voting on it until Jan. 17.
Joe Manchin has cited several concerns for opposing the social and environmental package, including many economic concerns such as “inflation and federal deficits, etc.” Several Democratic party members along with the official press release from the White House have all denounced him for going against his word given to President Biden, as well as choosing to derail the policy measures.
“Just as Senator Manchin reversed his position on Build Back Better this morning, we will continue to press him to see if he will reverse his position yet again, to honor his prior commitments and be true to his word,” the statement continued, before mentionin all the social policies that Manchin’s opposition is harming, affecting real people, people with medical needs, caregivers and more.
Earlier, in an extremely strongly-worded statement released, the White House went into intense detail about all the concerns cited by Joe Manchin and how they go against his own views he shared earlier with the president. The statement read, “Weeks ago, Senator Manchin committed to the President, at his home in Wilmington, to support the Build Back Better framework that the President then subsequently announced. Senator Manchin pledged repeatedly to negotiate on finalizing that framework “in good faith.”
The statement mentioned Manchin’s appearance on FOX News, “Senator Manchin promised to continue conversations in the days ahead and to work with us to reach that common ground. If his comments on FOX and written statement indicate an end to that effort, they represent a sudden and inexplicable reversal in his position, and a breach of his commitments to the President and the Senator’s colleagues in the House and Senate.”
