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Democrats unlikely to pass Biden social spending plan

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U.S. Vice President Kamala Harris (R) listens to President Joe Biden deliver remarks about his proposed ‘Build Back Better’ social spending bill in the East Room of the White House on October 28, 2021 in Washington, DC.

Chip Somodevilla | Getty Images

Senator Joe Biden’s bill on climate and social spending has been blocked in the Senate. This is threatening Democrats’ chances of passing it next year.

Senator Joe Manchin is a conservative Democrat and can only block his party’s plan. His party has waited to determine if it complies the Senate rules. This means that any vote on this bill could slip to 2022 when there will be more political pressure.

On Wednesday, Chuck Schumer, Senate Majority Leader said that his party would “continue to work on getting the Senate in a position where it can vote on President’s Build back Better legislation.” He did not mention his goal of approving the plan by Christmas — a target date he has repeated for weeks.

Biden responded Wednesday to a question asking if the bill would pass this year. It will be close.”

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Immediate consequences will result from the failure to pass this plan in 2021. If Congress does not extend it, the enhanced child tax credit up to $300 per month for each child will end at the close of the year. Families will receive their last payment. went out WednesdayThey would be renewed for one year by the Build Back Better Act.

The Senate will focus its attention on other priorities as soon as the bill reaches a wall. The Senate Democrats discussed ways to get around the filibuster, and passed a voting rights bill with Republican support in the next weeks.

After Sen. Kyrsten Silnema (D-Ariz.) and Manchin voted for a similar strategy, the idea of using temporary filibuster carsveouts gained momentum. pass a debt ceiling increase this week.After several states have passed restrictive voting laws in the past, Democrats tried to pass federal voter rights legislation. However, Republicans blocked them from passing their bills, insisting that states should have control over elections.

U.S. U.S. Senator Joe Manchin (D.W.Va.) stops during comments to journalists at the U.S. Capitol, Washington, D.C., U.S.November 1, 2021.

Jonathan Ernst | Reuters

There would be far more to the Senate’s plan if the Build Back Better act is not passed. Democrats view the legislation as a transformational package. It would lower the cost of child care and provide financial assistance to more families. And it would also make climate change mitigation easier than ever before. Democrats cannot afford to let the legislation languish in uncertainty. They must keep fighting for what their voters want.

Republicans claim it’s a complex spending plan, which would drive up inflation. Failing the bill will feed Democrats’ criticisms of their platform, but it would also make them look ineffective.

It is possible that the fate of this legislation could impact the outcome in midterm elections. Democrats have looked for progress they can sell to voters as Republicans appear favored to regain control of the House — and potentially the Senate.

Biden’s approval rating has declined despite all the economic assistance Democrats provided this year, and passage of the bipartisan infrastructure law. The infrastructure package may not be seen by voters for many months, or even years.

Manchin is open to voting in favor of the climate and social spending bills. However, Manchin expressed his concern over the cost of this plan and its potential increase in inflation even after pushing for a lower price to $1.75 billion from $3.5 trillion.

Biden spoke with Manchin this week but there wasn’t any apparent progress on the Build back Better plan. When Manchin was asked Wednesday about Schumer’s Christmas deadline to approve the bill, Manchin stated that the Senate Parliamentarian had not yet ruled on the details of what Democrats could include in the final package.

He said, “We don’t have anything to cast our votes on!” He said.

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