It all comes down to Senator Kyrsten Sinema with nearly half a trillion dollars in new spending and taxes on the line, now that West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin’s lips are firmly planted in the area of Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s buttocks.
The Arizona Democrat has remained mum on whether she’ll support the so-called Inflation Reduction Act. Schumer needs support from all 50 members of his caucus, or the bill will fail when it comes up for a vote, probably later this week.
When asked by Fox News, a spokesperson for Sinema said, “Sen. Sinema does not have comment as she’s reviewing the bill text and will need to see what comes out of the parliamentarian process.”
That’s not a no.
The Senate goes into recess on Friday, so the clock is ticking.
Manchin signed on to the bill late last week, even though its tax and regulatory provisions will harm the residents of his coal-producing state. Yesterday, Manchin told Bret Baier he’d made a “mistake” supporting previous inflationary spending measures.
“It does not raise taxes,” Manchin claimed. “All it does is close loopholes.”
If the law currently allows you to pay $10 in taxes, but the revised law makes you pay $11, that’s a hike, no matter what justification Manchin uses.
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The massive tax and spending bill includes $433 billion in “energy security and climate investments,” as well as extended ObamaCare subsidies. It also includes $739 billion in tax increases on nearly all Americans, despite Presidentish Joe Biden’s repeated promises not to raise taxes on anyone making less than $400,000.
It’s also all that’s left of Biden’s one-time FIVE-TRILLION-DOLLAR “Build Back Better” agenda. If this thing fails, it will be good for the country but terrible for Biden and the Democrat Party.
Most of the bill’s benefits would go to those who are better off, like buyers of pricy electric vehicles.
The VodkaPundit Rule of Thumb for tax increases is that they will, at most, raise about two-thirds of the promised revenue. That’s in good economic times, with a tailwind at the tax collector’s back. When times aren’t so good, a tax hike will raise even less than that.
Times aren’t feeling so good right now, are they?
Massive spending, regulation, and tax hikes at a time when prices are rising and supply chains are still strained would make matters even worse.
Let’s hope Kyrsten Sinema understands that, and puts her country — and the people of Arizona — ahead of her party.
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