Biden (Washington Insider Magazine) -The leader of the progressive House Democrats said earlier this week that her members had a constructive meeting with United States’ President Joe Biden, who is working to persuade different factions of his party to agree on a legislative package worth $1.9 trillion to $2.2 trillion for his climate and social safety-net plan.
Biden visited nine members of the left-wing caucus for more than two hours on Tuesday, and separately met with a group of moderate House members and senators, as the White House pressed for “urgency” in passing the president’s economic plan.
In a written statement, Jayapal stated that Biden is adhering to a topline figure of $1.9 trillion to $2.2 trillion, down from his earlier $3.5 trillion Build Back Better proposal.
Biden also met individually with Senate holdouts Krysten Sinema, D-Ariz., and Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., on Tuesday, Oct. 19.
Biden needs the support of all 50 Democratic senators to approve the measure in the Senate through a process known as reconciliation, but Manchin and Sinema have objected to the cost. Manchin has stated that his cap is $1.5 trillion.
Progressives in the House have indicated they will not assume another element of Biden’s domestic agenda – a $1 trillion infrastructure measure passed by the Senate in August – until the more comprehensive reconciliation package is passed.
Manchin has expressed his opposition to a climate plan included in Biden’s reconciliation package that would provide incentives to fossil fuel firms that convert to sustainable energy. According to Jayapal, reaching a final consensus on climate change remains a challenging task for progressives.
Biden’s social safety-net program calls for increased taxes on high-income individuals and businesses to fund free community college, universal prekindergarten, subsidized childcare, national paid leave, Medicare expansion, and other liberal goals.
Biden will travel to his hometown of Scranton, Pennsylvania, on Wednesday to pitch his plans. The president is under pressure to approve climate-related legislation, particularly before Biden attends a United Nations climate meeting in Glasgow on Oct. 31.
