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PRESENTED BYBY JOHN BRESNAHAN, ANNA PALMER AND JAKE SHERMAN THE TOPGood Thursday morning. President Joe Biden was supposed to leave for Rome early this morning. But instead, he’ll come to the Capitol at 9 a.m. to ask progressive House Democrats to do the one thing they’ve always hesitated to do — trust him. Biden’s main message this morning as he heads to HC-5 — the basement room in the Capitol — seems to be this: the Build Back Better negotiations are continuing and a deal is close. But House Democrats should vote for the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill now and trust him to deliver on the larger social spending package later. This is Biden’s second trip to meet with House Democrats on the bipartisan infrastructure bill, and he could end up with the same result as last time: leaving empty handed. It’s surprising that a president would take that gamble again. But the reality is that Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the Democratic leadership are stuck. Progressives refuse to back the bipartisan infrastructure bill until the slow-moving trillion-dollar Build Back Better Act is finalized. It may take days or weeks to turn that package into text and prepare it for the House floor — and that’s what progressives want to see happen before voting for infrastructure. Pelosi has called for the House Rules Committee to meet today and unveil some text of the still unfinished reconciliation package. This is Pelosi’s bid to show progress. She wants to create momentum — real or imagined — to push this process forward. But the deadline for voting on the infrastructure bill is Oct. 31. And Biden is Pelosi’s only chance to break the stalemate inside her caucus. Progressives, led by Reps. Pramila Jayapal (Wash.), Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.) and Mark Pocan (Wis.) and others — have been clear about this for months. It’s not so much that they don’t trust Biden — in fact, many of them offer praise for the president — but they definitely don’t trust Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.). That Senate pair has blocked environmental initiatives, paid family leave, Medicare expansion, free community college and other progressive priorities from being included in the reconciliation package. In return, progressives say there’s no reason to vote on the infrastructure bill — which Sinema and Manchin played huge roles in crafting — before they have a chance to examine the full text of the BBB. So this is a big moderate-versus-progressive dispute with Biden and the Democratic congressional leadership caught in the middle. It’s not where Biden or Pelosi are used to finding themselves. Biden has a host of challenges here: 1) The obvious: Getting progressives to trust him. 2) Getting progressives to trust Manchin and Sinema: This may prove too tough even for Biden. 3) Instilling a sense of urgency: Biden is asking House Democrats to take a vote that they don’t really need to take right now. Jayapal and others have consistently made the point that there is no reason for them to vote now, and they’d rather wait a week or two to see the BBB in its final form. All the leadership would have to do is pass a bill to extend highway funding for another month or so. Pelosi has her own challenges: 1) Credibility: Pelosi needs to be credible to both moderates and progressives. She’s lost some juice with mods, considering she promised an infrastructure vote 37 days ago. Pelosi told us just Tuesday — as she has for months — that she wouldn’t set a vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill until the House could vote on both the public works bill and the BBB. Then Pelosi changed course and said House Democrats should move forward on infrastructure even if BBB isn’t done. 2) Danger of tight margins and big ambitions: This is Biden, Pelosi and Chuck Schumer’s biggest problem. Their plan was to go “big and bold” on Covid relief, which they did with the $1.9 trillion American Rescue Plan. Then Biden unveiled the “transformational” American Jobs Plan and American Family Plan, with a breathtaking $4 trillion-plus price tag. Democrats were going to use the budget reconciliation process to pass the proposals, meaning they didn’t need Republicans at all. Combined with a booming U.S. economy thanks to the wave of new Covid vaccines, Democrats were going to ride into 2022 on a high note. Yet what this process has exposed is the ideological divides in the Democratic Party, which are in a way, similar to what Republicans went through with the Tea Party a decade ago. Biden, Pelosi and Schumer are now trying to “land this plane” despite these differences. It’s not pretty. If Biden is somehow able to convince progressives to vote for infrastructure, the leadership would probably move today or tomorrow to pass it. Remember: A handful of Republicans — six or seven — will vote for infrastructure, so Pelosi’s margin is probably something like 10 votes. There are more than 10 progressives at the moment who have told us on the record they will vote against this bill at this point. We’ll see if Biden can change the dynamics. The spectacle of a president coming to the Hill for a second time to implore his own rank-and-file to pass a bill both he and the party leadership desperately need is truly fascinating. That’s not where anyone thought Democrats would be heading at the end of October. Clyburn with a 👀 comment
PRESENTED BY HCA HEALTHCARE At HCA Healthcare, we work to ease the stress that the healthcare insurance and billing process can create. We provide assistance when people need it most, helping patients understand and access generous programs designed to significantly reduce their financial burden. Additionally, we care for more Medicaid inpatients than any other U.S. health system, and offer patients with no insurance – or exhausted insurance benefits – a discount (averaging 90% of the total bill) for emergency services. THE TAXMAN The new Democratic tax plan We scooped this last night for Premium subscribers, but it’s important enough to mention again. Democrats seem to have settled on a new tax plan to help pay for their reconciliation package. It’s a surtax on wealthy Americans. Under the plan as envisioned at the moment, rich Americans will pay an additional 5% tax on income over $10 million, and an additional 3% on top of that on aggregate gross income over $25 million. This replaces the proposed “billionaire income tax,” which faced opposition from several Democrats, including Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.). On the business side, it seems nearly certain Democrats are going to impose a 15% corporate minimum tax rate. We’ve heard some estimates that the revised Democratic tax plans could net $1.5 trillion to $1.8 trillion, depending on how it’s implemented, which should be enough to offset the full cost of the reconciliation package, although this isn’t an official score. Here’s a handy tweet from WSJ’s star tax reporter Rich Rubin on what’s in and what’s out — at this moment. RESIGNATION NATION Republicans are demanding nearly every Biden official resign — part deux Yesterday, our colleagues Christian Hall and Max Cohen brought you an item on how congressional Republicans are calling on nearly a dozen top Biden administration officials to resign. Some are even requesting John Kerry step down. By popular demand, they’re back with another item detailing their research. They compiled a list of each House or Senate Republican who has called for the different Biden officials to resign. Give us a holler if we’ve missed anyone (maybe it’s your boss) — we’re always looking to add to the list! And believe it or not, it’s a growing tally. In the 24 hours since we published the first list, the number of GOP senators calling on Attorney General Merrick Garland to resign has doubled to two, thanks to Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas. President Joe Biden: Sen. Josh Hawley, Sen. Joni Ernst, Sen. Marsha Blackburn, Sen. Rick Scott, Sen. Roger Marshall, Rep. Lauren Boebert, Rep. Madison Cawthorn, Rep. Ronny Jackson, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Rep. Louie Gohmert, Rep. Mariannette Miller Meeks, Rep. Andrew Clyde, Rep. Greg Steube, Rep. Andy Biggs, Rep. Dan Crenshaw, Rep. Jody Hice, Rep. Jim Jordan, Rep. John Rutherford, Rep. Lee Zeldin, Rep. Greg Murphy, Rep. Tom Rice, Rep. Byron Donalds, Rep. Barry Loudermilk, Rep. Mike Garcia, Rep. Mike Waltz, Rep. Elise Stefanik, Rep. Brian J. Mast, Rep. Bob Good, Rep. Matthew M. Rosendale Sr., Rep. Barry Moore, Rep. Bill Posey, Rep. Russ Fulcher, Rep. Andy Harris, Rep. Mary E. Miller, Rep. Michael Cloud, Rep. Claudia Tenney, Rep. Jerry L. Carl, Rep. Mo Brooks, Rep. Jeff Duncan, Rep. Steven M. Palazzo, Rep. Scott Perry, Rep. Yvette Herrell, Rep. Debbie Lesko, Rep. Brian Babin, Rep. Mike Johnson, Rep. Ralph Norman Vice President Kamala Harris: Sen. Marsha Blackburn, Rep. Lauren Boebert, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Rep. Andy Biggs, Rep. Greg Steube Secretary of State Antony Blinken: Sen. Josh Hawley, Sen. Marsha Blackburn, Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Rep. Barry Moore, Rep. Scott Perry, Rep. Ronny Jackson, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Rep. Lee Zeldin, Rep. Jim Banks, Rep. Joe Wilson, Rep. Tim Burchett, Rep. Greg Steube, Rep. Chip Roy Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas: Sen. Tom Cotton, Sen. Tommy Tuberville, Sen. Rick Scott, Sen. Lindsey Graham, Rep. Ashley Hinson, Rep. Claudia Tenney, Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Rep. Ronny Jackson Attorney General Merrick Garland: Sen. Josh Hawley and Sen. Tom Cotton Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin: Sen. Josh Hawley, Sen. Marsha Blackburn, Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, Rep. Matt Gaetz, Rep. Andrew Clyde, Rep. Scott Perry, Rep. Ronny Jackson, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Rep. Greg Steube, Rep. Clay Higgins, Rep. Ralph Norman, Rep. Brian Babin, Rep. Lauren Boebert, Rep. Rick Crawford, Rep. Morgan Griffith, Rep. Andy Harris, Rep. Jody Hice, Rep. Mary Miller, Rep. Bill Posey, Rep. Matthew Rosendale, Rep. David Schweikert Joint Chiefs Chair Mark Milley: Sen. Marsha Blackburn, Sen. Josh Hawley, Rep. Barry Moore, Rep. Matt Gaetz, Rep. Andrew Clyde, Rep. Ronny Jackson, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, Rep. Greg Steube, Rep. Clay Higgins, Rep. Brian Babin, Rep. Andy Biggs, Rep. Lauren Boebert, Rep. Mo Brooks, Rep. Jerry Carl, Rep. Michael Cloud, Rep. Louie Gohmert, Rep. Robert Good, Rep. Morgan Griffith, Rep. Andy Harris, Rep. Diana Harshbarger, Rep. Yvette Herrell, Rep. Jody Hice, Rep. Mary Miller, Rep. Ralph Norman, Rep. Steven Palazzo, Rep. Scott Perry, Rep. Bill Posey, Rep. Matthew Rosendale, Rep. John Rutherford, Rep. Claudia Tenney National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan: Sen. Josh Hawley and Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks Special Climate Envoy John Kerry: Rep. Barry Moore Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg: Rep. Ronny Jackson Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines: Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene PRESENTED BY HCA HEALTHCARE HCA Healthcare cares for more Medicaid inpatients than any other U.S. health system. Our assistance programs also reduce financial burdens for underinsured or uninsured patients. LAST NIGHT Reporters top lawmakers in Congressional Softball Game The Congressional Softball Game was last night and, quite predictably, the Bad News Babes — made up of reporters — beat members of Congress 5-1. Punchbowl News was proud to be among the many sponsors of the game. Here are some images from the game. FRONTS MOMENTS 9 a.m.: President Joe Biden will speak to the House Democratic Caucus in the Capitol. 10:45 a.m.: Speaker Nancy Pelosi will hold her weekly news conference. 11:30 a.m.: Biden will speak in the East Room of the Capitol. … House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy will hold his weekly news conference. 12:15 p.m.: Biden and First Lady Jill Biden will leave the White House for Andrews. They’ll fly to Rome. 8:10 p.m.: Biden will arrive in Rome. CLIP FILE NYT → “Hunting for Money, Democrats Rush to Rewrite Tax Code,” by Alan Rappeport in D.C. and Jim Tankersley in Rome → “G.O.P. Attack Involving Toni Morrison Novel Inflames Virginia Contest,” by Lisa Lerer and Reid J. Epstein WaPo → “Texas, Justice Dept. argue over role of federal courts as abortion law dispute heads to Supreme Court,” by Robert Barnes WSJ → “Federal Trade Commission Scrutinizing Facebook Disclosures,” by John D. McKinnon and Brent Kendall → “Republican Lawmakers Question Vetting Standards for Afghans Brought to U.S.,” by Jessica Donati and Siobhan Hughes AP → “Biden, Dems get low marks on spending talks: AP-NORC poll,” by Kevin Freking and Hannah Fingerhut → “Oil chiefs set to testify at landmark congressional hearing,” by Matthew Daly PRESENTED BY HCA HEALTHCARE At HCA Healthcare, we work to ease the stress that the healthcare insurance and billing process can bring. We have developed several programs and resources designed to provide help when people may need it most, including pricing information, financial counseling, patient-friendly billing practices and generous financial assistance programs for uninsured and underinsured patients. HCA Healthcare’s patient benefit advisors help patients understand and access programs and discounts — which we believe are among the most generous and comprehensive — in order to significantly reduce their financial burden. These resources are available to any patient who needs assistance in applying for Medicaid or other eligible coverage. In fact, HCA Healthcare cares for more Medicaid inpatients than any other health system in the U.S. In addition, our Uninsured Discount Policy offers patients with no insurance, or exhausted insurance benefits, a discount (averaging 90% of the total bill) for emergency services. Enjoying Punchbowl News AM? Subscribe 10 friends with your unique link (below) and get a Punchbowl News hat! Your referral link is: Or share via You currently have: 0 referrals
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