Joe Biden's Build Back Better Bill Still Pending Approval; Senators Confident It Will Pass Following Some Changes
By Camille Hembrod Jan 12, 2022 03:51 AM EST
(Photo : Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 10: Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) rubs his face as he talks to reporters while heading to a leadership meeting and a vote on Capitol Hill on January 10, 2022 in Washington, DC. Manchin voted against passing President Joe Biden's Build Back Better legislation before the end of 2021 and will be key in deciding whether the Senate will cast aside the filibuster to further his party's agenda in the New Year.
Countless discussions regarding Joe Biden's Build Back Better bill continue to occur, especially now that House majority leader Chuck Schumer confirmed that Democrats would soon be casting their votes.
According to reports, Senate Democrats are confident that they can still pass the bill, but they also know that they need to change it. After all, not all Democrats are on board with the Build Back Better bill as a whole.
As such, one of the suggestions among the party is for specific components of the Build Back Better bill to be voted on and approved apart from the rest.
Senate Democrats willing to make adjustments to BBB
For instance, Rep. Susan Wild is fighting to pass Build Back Better's $35 monthly cap on co-pays for insulin treatments. This will take effect next year and will only apply to products covered by insurance if approved.
Wild said she would be surprised if Senate Democrats won't approve this.
Other senators are convinced that narrower segments will be approved much easier as opposed to the entire Build Back Better bill as a whole that would cost $1.8 trillion for the next ten years.
"I think that all the historical signs seem to be pointing to some narrower set of segments. Obviously, the old saying, 'Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good,' has been vastly overstated, but it's still true," Sen. Richard Blumenthal said via the Huffington Post.
Read Also: Joe Biden Shelves Joe Manchin's $1.8 Trillion Social Spending Offer After Senator Refused To Support Build Back Better Bill
Joe Manchin won't support Build Back Better bill
Sen. Joe Manchin is proving to be one of the biggest roadblocks of the bill. After all, he previously told reporters that he couldn't wrap his head around providing families with financial benefits when some of them would use the money for drugs.
But Rep. Dan Kildee pointed out that while Manchin has been very vocal regarding his lack of support for the Build Back Better bill, the senator has not said exactly what he would be willing to support.
CNN also likened what Manchin has been doing to what former Republican Sen. Charles Grassley did to the Barack Obama administration in 2009. At the time, Grassley also refused to get on board with Obama's Affordable Care Act.
But the publication also pointed out that not all hope is lost when it comes to reeling in Manchin to support Build Back Better bill. After all, the Senate Democrats already agreed to make some changes.
The challenge now has to do with how they would spend and allocate their $1.75 to $1.8 trillion budget among all the components included in the bill.
Joe Manchin backs out of his $1.8 trillion proposal
Last year, Manchin proposed the $1.8 trillion frameworks to Biden as part of their negotiations. This would include universal prekindergarten for ten years, expansion of Obamacare, and a huge budget to combat climate change.
But after proposing his framework, the West Virginia senator told reporters that he decided not to support the bill. The back and forth has caused more tensions between Manchin and the Democrats, according to MSNBC.
However, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said they would continue to see if they could sway Manchin to support the Build Back Better bill.
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