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President Biden got several big wins on spending levels, not raising taxes on working people, and broadband investment on infrastructure.
The framework is expected to increase federal spending by nearly $600 billion to invest in roads, broadband internet, electric utilities, and other federal infrastructure projects.
It is expected to be paid for with a suite of revenue increases that do not violate either Mr. Biden’s pledge not to raise taxes on the middle class or Republicans’ red line of not reversing business tax cuts passed under President Donald J. Trump in 2017, though the details of the revenue sources have not yet been finalized.
The Senators will meet with President Biden And Vice President Harris at 11:45 AM ET to discuss the deal.
Republicans started this process by wanting to pay for infrastructure by raising the gas tax and user fees on families and working people. Their offer was less than half of the agreed-upon $1.2 trillion, and they didn’t want to spend a penny on broadband.
The Republican strategy then shifted to supporting a bipartisan infrastructure bill and then hoping that Democrats wouldn’t have the votes in the Senate to pass phase two, which is the Biden jobs/human infrastructure investment proposal. However, Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) signaled his support for phase two, which left Republicans with the choice of either getting something on the infrastructure bills or having no say at all.
The Trump tax cuts are still likely history, as they can be wiped out in the reconciliation bill, and Biden is still going to get his jobs bill. Plus, President Biden got the additional IRS enforcement that he wanted that will be used to go after wealthy and corporate tax cheats.
This is a big win for President Biden on several fronts, as he showed the negotiating savvy that he is famous for.
Mitch McConnell didn’t want to help Biden fulfill his promise of bipartisanship, but by fully leveraging their power, Democrats and the President are on their way to getting bipartisanship and everything that they want.
Mr. Easley is the managing editor, who is White House Press Pool, and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
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