The Archive
Every issue of the Punchbowl News newsletter, including our special editions, right here at your fingertips.
Join the community, and get the morning edition delivered straight to your inbox.
Special Edition
⚡ Punchbowl News Special Edition: Manchin says he's done with the BBB
Presented by The Electronic Payments Coalition
NEW DATA: Oxford Economics finds Durbin-Marshall Credit Card Mandates would hurt local economies, costing $227 billion and 156,000 jobs across the country.
![]() BY JOHN BRESNAHAN, ANNA PALMER AND JAKE SHERMAN Happy Sunday. We wanted to send Premium members a quick note with some big, big news about the Build Back Better Act. If you’ve been forwarded this email, please consider subscribing. Here’s the news: Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said on “Fox News Sunday” that he cannot support the BBB, President Joe Biden’s signature legislative proposal. It’s notable he made this announcement on Fox during a congressional recess, not at a party lunch or at a news conference on Capitol Hill. Here is the video of Manchin speaking to Bret Baier on “Fox News Sunday.” And here is the key quote:
Here’s a statement from Manchin, which includes this quote:
Responding to Manchin, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) said on CNN’s “State of the Union” he “absolutely” wants a vote on BBB even if Manchin will vote no. Sanders used a particularly sharp tone in responding to Manchin, saying he didn’t have the “guts” and “courage” to take on special interests. “Let him vote no in front of the whole world,” Sanders told Jake Tapper. OK, so let’s unpack this a bit. → The attention will now turn to whether Democrats can scale back this bill and refashion it to get it to a place Manchin can accept. Manchin has generally been OK with a $1.7 trillion bill, but this seems to have shifted the dynamics in what he’s willing to vote for – in fact, his statement says quite clearly he is done with this, and Democrats should turn elsewhere. Some Democrats reached out to us this morning and said this was Manchin posturing. It certainly feels like a definitive "no" — but we will see. This will be the major storyline of the first several months of 2022. → Of immediate concern to Democrats: The Child Tax Credit expires at the end of this year, and Democrats will be very eager to try to find a way to extend it if the BBB is dead. But finding a way to extend this is going to be difficult, we would have to imagine, since many Republicans do not support the CTC in its current form. → Progressives in the House are going to be furious. They agreed to pass the infrastructure bill with promises that Biden would be able to bring Manchin along. As of now, he’s not been able to get Manchin on board. There had already been growing frustration among the progressives in the party. Manchin’s statement that he is done with BBB will infuriate them even further. The problem for progressives is they don’t have a lot of leverage here – especially because they agreed to pass infrastructure already. → Between his no on the BBB and his unwillingness to change the filibuster rules, Manchin is pretty isolated from his party on Capitol Hill. → Where does this leave President Joe Biden? Biden’s campaign slogan was Build Back Better. Now, the bill with that name faces a very uncertain future. What will and can he do to change Manchin’s mind? Biden fashioned himself a president with uncanny legislative skills. But this is a huge blow. Will Biden settle for something smaller? Or will he just throw in the towel altogether. At this point, Democrats can campaign on the American Rescue Plan and the bipartisan infrastructure bill that Biden signed into law. We’ll have more for the entire Punchbowl News community in the AM edition Monday morning. Also for your radar: Former Georgia GOP Sen. Johnny Isaakson died at 76, according to the AJC. |

Crucial Capitol Hill news AM, Midday, and PM—5 times a week
Join a community of some of the most powerful people in Washington and beyond. Exclusive newsmaker events, parties, in-person and virtual briefings and more.
Subscribe to Premium
The Canvass Year-End Report
And what senior aides and downtown figures believe will happen in 2023.
Check it outEvery single issue of Punchbowl News published, all in one place
Visit the archive
Presented by The Electronic Payments Coalition
NEW DATA: Oxford Economics finds Durbin-Marshall Credit Card Mandates would hurt local economies, costing $227 billion and 156,000 jobs across the country.