WASHINGTON (AP) — In a startling turnabout, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Joe Manchin announced an expansive agreement Wednesday that had eluded them for months addressing health care and climate, raising taxes on high earners and corporations and reducing federal debt.

 

The two Democrats said the Senate would vote on the wide-ranging measure next week, setting up President Joe Biden and Democrats for an unexpected victory in the runup to November elections in which their congressional control is in peril. A House vote would follow, perhaps later in August, with unanimous Republican opposition in both chambers seemingly certain.

https://news.yahoo.com/manchin-says-health-energy-tax-211108925.html

 

 

This is actually huge news, or at least potentially huge. If the bill passes.. For one thing, it's going to allow Medicare to negotiate prices on certain drugs. This is a very popular proposal. One of the few genuinely populist measures that Trump ran on was to do just that. Between election day and inauguration he reversed himself.

 

It also greatly increases funding for the IRS. The Republicans have starved the IRS for funding so that it is hamstrung in investigating tax cheats

IRS chief says $1 trillion in taxes goes uncollected every year

Rettig said the agency is “outgunned” by increasingly sophisticated tax avoidance schemes, while years of budget cuts have left it with about 17,000 fewer revenue enforcement staff than it had a decade ago.

He called for Congress to provide “consistent, timely, adequate and multiyear funding.”

https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-treasury-irs-idUSKBN2C0255

It's funny. Republicans consistently claim that govt should be run more like a business, but then they refuse to fund adequately a division of govt that promises to being in a huge amount of revenue.

 

And of course, there's a huge investment in climate change and renewable energy production. A total of 433 billion dollars.

When it was announced sometime in the past week how Manchin was doing his usual turd in the punchbowl routine ("I just can't do that to my grandchildren" (don't you just love cowards who hide behind their kids?)) someone on US television news said something about Chuck Schumer threatening him with going after some of his self-serving coal industry involvement.  I didn't take it seriously, I don't expect much from Chuck.  Well, I happily stand corrected and am impressed how he put Manchin's feet to the fire.

If you want details on Manchin's gravy train this will give you a clue:

https://www.politico.com/news/2022/02/08/manchin-family-coal-company-00003218

 

 

1 hour ago, bendejo said:

When it was announced sometime in the past week how Manchin was doing his usual turd in the punchbowl routine ("I just can't do that to my grandchildren" (don't you just love cowards who hide behind their kids?)) someone on US television news said something about Chuck Schumer threatening him with going after some of his self-serving coal industry involvement.  I didn't take it seriously, I don't expect much from Chuck.  Well, I happily stand corrected and am impressed how he put Manchin's feet to the fire.

If you want details on Manchin's gravy train this will give you a clue:

https://www.politico.com/news/2022/02/08/manchin-family-coal-company-00003218

 

 

What a nice little crook.....

11 minutes ago, candide said:

What a nice little crook.....

Inspired by love of country and family, to be sure.