Biden and Pelosi call progressives' bluff


The White House's $1.75 trillion budget reconciliation is out, and make no mistake: Progressives got rolled.
Forget $10 trillion or $6 trillion. The $3.5 trillion package the most liberal Democrats in Congress thought was the compromise is now $1.75 trillion. Meanwhile, party leaders are pressing forward with the bipartisan infrastructure bill while all this is still unresolved. President Biden gave progressives half a loaf, but they see it as crumbs.
The question is what they'll do next. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) insists this version of Build Back Better "needs to be improved," while Missouri Rep. Cori Bush (D), more bluntly, says she feels "bamboozled." The Democratic majorities are so thin legislation can be defeated if only a handful of members go rogue, to say nothing of the whole Progressive Caucus. This fact has given moderate Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.) enormous influence on the process up to this point. Now it's time for lawmakers further left to flex their muscles. They will, and they speak for more Democrats than Manchin or Sinema, especially in deep blue districts.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
But Biden, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) still have one ace in the hole: As much as the progressives may talk like the Freedom Caucus, they don't define success the same way. The Freedom Caucus is often content to tank a bill and get nothing. Progressives don't work that way. Principled believers in activist government will have trouble saying no to modest spending increases if the alternative is nothing, and that's exactly the choice the White House has presented.
Democrats increasingly seem to realize this, however much they dislike it. "I don't think it's hyperbole to say that the House and Senate majorities and my presidency will be determined by what happens in the next week," Biden said Wednesday. Top Democrats have shifted their tone on how much it matters that Biden is heading to international summits without having gotten much done through Congress at home. Only days ago, they were suggesting sophisticated Europeans would understand the legislative rough-and-tumble. Now they're conceding this stalemate is perhaps not a good look for American democracy.
Biden's prediction likely isn't hyperbole, but the democracy talk surely is: Progressives can't pass their full agenda because they don't have the votes. Still, this might be the kind of talk that will convince them to pass something. Biden sure hopes so.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
W. James Antle III is the politics editor of the Washington Examiner, the former editor of The American Conservative, and author of Devouring Freedom: Can Big Government Ever Be Stopped?.
-
One great cookbook: ‘The Woks of Life’
The Week Recommends A family’s opinionated, reliable take on all kinds of Chinese cooking
-
Digital addiction: the compulsion to stay online
In depth What it is and how to stop it
-
Can Trump bully Netanyahu into Gaza peace?
Today's Big Question The Israeli leader was ‘strong-armed’ into new peace deal
-
‘Every argument has a rational, emotional and rhetorical component’
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Why is this government shutdown so consequential?
Today's Big Question Federal employee layoffs could be in the thousands
-
Shutdown: Democrats stand firm, at a cost
Feature With Trump refusing to negotiate, Democrats’ fight over health care could push the government toward a shutdown
-
Trump’s plan for a government shutdown: mass firings
IN THE SPOTLIGHT As lawmakers scramble to avoid a shutdown, the White House is making plans for widespread layoffs that could lead to a permanent federal downsizing
-
Democrats: Harris and Biden’s blame game
Feature Kamala Harris’ new memoir reveals frustrations over Biden’s reelection bid and her time as vice president
-
Democrats might be ready for a shutdown. What do they want?
Today’s Big Question A ‘hardened approach’ against Trump
-
Democrats’ strategy to woo voters for 2026: religion
The Explainer Politicians like Rob Sand and James Talarico have made a name for themselves pushing their faith
-
‘We must empower young athletes with the knowledge to stay safe’
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day