(RightWing.org) – Big government is expensive. Semi-socialist government is flat-out unaffordable. Democrats are up to the old tricks that both parties use when they want to pull a fast one over the public. It’s tougher doing it to themselves.
On Thursday, October 28, President Joe Biden hurriedly rushed to Capitol Hill to announce a deal was struck on a partisan $1.75 trillion semi-socialist bill with moderate Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ). The question is, did he really have a deal? Manchin and Sinema never outright said they had an agreement. On Monday, November 1, Manchin called out Democrats for building a framework with only two-by-fours as they proceeded to pack it with the stuff Manchin said previously was unacceptable.
The Kids Keep Putting Their Hands in the Cookie Jar
Thanks to an evenly split Senate, Manchin may be the only adult in the room and is currently the most powerful person in Washington, DC. To pass the go-it-alone partisan bill, Democrats cannot lose a single vote. In July, the West Virginia Senator warned Progressives not to put their hands in the cookie jar. He warned them again in August and September. Still, they kept taking cookies. In October, Manchin made them pay the price for not listening. After Biden possibly got ahead of himself and announced a framework, they’re putting their hands back in the cookie jar again.
So, what’s going on? Manchin and Sinema gutted most of the social and climate spending to bring the $3.5 trillion price tag down to $1.75 trillion (which Manchin hasn’t said he agreed to and may still insist on $1.5 trillion). Instead of staying within the framework, the Left is shoving their agenda back into it. In the process, they are using accounting gimmicks to make it appear less expensive to the public than it really is.
Manchin Tells Progressives to Get Their Hands Out of the Cookie Jar — Again
Manchin is accusing Democrats of three things:
- They are adding social and climate items back into the legislation that Manchin and Sinema stripped in negotiations with Biden.
- They are using accounting gimmicks and schemes to make the cost of a bill appear at least 50% less expensive than the actual cost.
- They are holding the nearly $1 trillion bipartisan traditional infrastructure bill hostage to the unacceptable reconciliation package.
The moderate senator added that Democrats are ignoring the impact of the legislation on inflation and the US debt, which currently stands at $29 trillion. Manchin continues to argue that it makes no sense to expand government programs when Medicare and Social Security will be insolvent in a few years.
He stated that Democrats must slow down, stop the charade, and get the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to score the cost of the legislation. Finally, he added that he would support a bill that moves the country forward, but is also open to voting against legislation that he believes will hurt the country.
So, there you have it. Manchin is doing something that the supposed moderate Joe Biden should have done in the first place. In one speech, he nailed the Democrats for creating a circus and playing games. If enacted into law, Manchin said that it is a “recipe for economic crisis.”
Since the summer, the entire process has been one big game where Democrats overplayed their hand. Apparently, the White House and House Democrats aren’t getting the message. They are moving forward with what they hope will be a vote this week. If they aren’t listening once again, Manchin may use the power of his vote to wake them up.
The cookie jar is about empty.
What happens then?
Stay tuned. It could get interesting.
Don Purdum, Independent Political Analyst
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