For Christmas (and Hanukkah, and Kwanzaa), Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders wants to give working-class West Virginians a child tax credit, child care assistance, free preschool, two free years of community college, lower health insurance premiums, expanded Medicare, home health care assistance for the elderly, an expanded Earned Income Tax Credit for low-wage workers, good-paying clean energy jobs, worker training, and more.
West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin wants to give them a lump of coal.
Of course, few working-class Americans—particularly in a state that has one of the highest poverty rates in the country—could look at that list and think, “Hey, what we really need is to fiercely defend the status quo, tax cuts for the wealthy, and the narrow interests of fossil fuel concerns. Because things have been going so, so well for us.”
But that’s exactly what Manchin presumes West Virginians want—because he’s a native West Virginian and Bernie Sanders isn’t. So there.
In an op-ed published Friday in the Charleston (West Virginia) Gazette-Mail, Sanders made a strong pitch for Joe Biden’s $3.5 trillion Build Back Better plan, which Democrats have been trying to pass through budget reconciliation. Of course, the plan would already be awaiting Biden’s signature if not for the galling obstinance of two Democratic senators—Manchin and Arizona’s Kyrsten Sinema. Both pretend to be backing their constituents’ wishes and best interests, but nothing could be further from the truth.
To quote from Sanders’ op-ed:
This bill would take on the greed of the pharmaceutical industry and lower the cost of prescription drugs in America by having Medicare negotiate prices with drug companies, something the VA already does. It is unacceptable that we continue to pay, by far, the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs — sometimes 10 times more than the people in other countries.
Sen. Manchin, are West Virginians really more concerned about pharmaceutical industry profits than their own prescription drug costs? That seems unlikely, Sanders notes.
The Build Back Better plan is not only vitally important for seniors, but it is enormously important for working families and their children. As a result of the $300 direct payments to working class parents which began in the American Rescue Plan, we have cut childhood poverty in our country by half. It would be unconscionable to see those payments end, which is exactly what will happen if we do not pass this bill.
And are residents of the Mountain State really more concerned about preserving corporate and upper-class tax cuts than reducing child poverty?
No. No, they aren’t, as both Sanders and Manchin well know.
Poll after poll shows overwhelming support for this legislation. Yet, the political problem we face is that in a 50-50 Senate we need every Democratic senator to vote “yes.” We now have only 48. Two Democratic senators remain in opposition, including Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va.
Oh, that’s below the belt, Sen. Sanders. How dare you tell West Virginians how transformative the Build Back Better plan would be for them and their families? How dare you point out the greed of corporations and wealthy individuals, and of the politicians they have on speed dial? So rude. Is there no comity left in the venerable Upper Chamber?
Needless to say, Manchin was pissed. Linking to Sanders’ op-ed on Twitter, he blasted out this fusillade of feckless horse plop:
For the nontweeters:
MANCHIN: “This isn’t the first time an out-of-stater has tried to tell West Virginians what is best for them despite having no relationship to our state. Millions of jobs are open, supply chains are strained and unavoidable inflation taxes are draining workers’ hard-earned wages as the price of gasoline and groceries continues to climb. Senator Sanders’ answer is to throw more money on an already overheated economy while 52 other Senators have grave concerns about this approach. To be clear, again, Congress should proceed with caution on any additional spending and I will not vote for a reckless expansion of government programs. No op-ed from a self-declared Independent socialist is going to change that.”
Thanks for the lecture, man, but that is pretty weak sauce. First of all, West Virginians have already decided what’s best for them, and it’s Biden’s Build Back Better agenda.
A poll conducted by Global Strategy Group in August found that the Build Back Better bill is popular among West Virginians, particularly when it’s pointed out that it will be funded by raising taxes on the rich.
Charleston Gazette-Mail:
Gary Zuckett, executive director of the West Virginia Citizen Action Group, said Manchin should rest assured that West Virginia voters will have his back if he votes for the $3.5 trillion bill, as long as he also closes the significant loopholes within the American tax system that would help pay for it.
A poll of 600 registered West Virginia voters found 48% support Biden’s reconciliation plan. After polled voters were given the option of raising taxes on the richest Americans and corporations, while closing the loopholes that have caused significant wealth disparities, support for the plan rose as high as 70%.
So it’s odd that Manchin is using the tired old canard about outsiders not knowing what’s best for regular plainspoken folks down in the holler; those folks are clearly telling Manchin that those outsiders are right.
It’s not just West Virginians who back this plan. Build Back Better—particularly its tax-the-rich provisions—remains broadly popular across the country.
Vox:
A Vox and Data for Progress poll, conducted October 8-12, found that 71 percent of voters support raising taxes on the wealthiest 2 percent of Americans to pay for the bill. Eighty-six percent of Democrats and 50 percent of Republicans backed the idea. Other tax provisions focused on the wealthy that could be included in the bill — such as tax increases on corporations and capital gains — found 65 percent or more support overall.
Sixty-three percent of voters in the poll said they supported the $3.5 trillion overall plan that includes spending on health care, long-term care, child care, and clean-energy jobs.
In other words, Sanders, a Vermont liberal, is self-evidently more attuned to the needs of West Virginians than Manchin is. I wonder why that would be. Hmm.
As for those inflation fears—way to amplify Republicans’ dishonest talking points, Senator! Yeah, $3.5 trillion is a lot of money, but it’s not like that money will be distributed all at once on Black Friday Eve, spurring stampedes in Best Buys, Walmarts, and Dollar Trees across the country. Those funds would be doled out over 10 years. If we don’t have our supply chain problems sorted out by 2031, then we’ve got bigger problems than an “inflationary” child tax credit. And if we claw back just a small portion of the ill-gotten loot the ultra-wealthy have been amassing over the past several decades, the plan will be paid for. Funny, though, how inflation is only ever a worry when poor people are benefiting. Weird, huh?
The senior senator from West Virginia is going to have to work on his deflections, because this one is just trash. And, sadly, perhaps more than anyone else, Manchin knows it.
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