Manchin won't vote for Build Back Better, leaving Biden's flagship bill unlikely to pass
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said Sunday that he will not vote for President Biden's landmark $1.75 trillion Build Back Better bill, Fox News reports.
The Senate is split evenly between Democrats and Republicans and no Republicans support the bill, which means Biden cannot afford any defections. Without Manchin's vote, Build Back Better is unlikely to pass.
"This is a 'no,' on this piece of legislation," Manchin said during an appearance on Fox News Sunday when host Bret Baier asked him point-blank. (Baier is filling in after Chris Wallace's departure from Fox News last weekend, The Wrap reports.)
Subscribe to 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.
"I have tried everything I know to do," Manchin added. He cited concerns about inflation, the national debt, and the "mammoth" cost of the bill as reasons for his decision and said Biden has been "wonderful to work with."
Manchin met with Biden last week to discuss what it would take for him to vote for the tax and spending bill, which would expand the social safety net and take steps to tackle climate change, but negotiations went "very poorly," Politico reported.
Catie Edmondson and Emily Cochrane of The New York Times wrote that the "centerpiece of Mr. Biden's domestic agenda" had suffered a "perhaps fatal blow" but suggested that Build Back Better might still pass early next year, albeit in a significantly pared-down form acceptable to Manchin.
Either way, it marks a massive political defeat for Biden, whose low approval ratings already portend serious losses for Democrats in the 2022 midterm elections.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Grayson Quay was the weekend editor at TheWeek.com. His writing has also been published in National Review, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Modern Age, The American Conservative, The Spectator World, and other outlets. Grayson earned his M.A. from Georgetown University in 2019.
-
Can AI tools be used to Hollywood's advantage?
Talking Points It makes some aspects of the industry faster and cheaper. It will also put many people in the entertainment world out of work
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold, The Week US Published
-
'Paraguay has found itself in a key position'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
Meet Youngmi Mayer, the renegade comedian whose frank new memoir is a blitzkrieg to the genre
The Week Recommends 'I'm Laughing Because I'm Crying' details a biracial life on the margins, with humor as salving grace
By Scott Hocker, The Week US Published
-
Sri Lanka's new Marxist leader wins huge majority
Speed Read The left-leaning coalition of newly elected Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake won 159 of the legislature's 225 seats
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden arrives in Peru for final summits
Speed Read President Joe Biden will meet Chinese President Xi Jinping, visit the Amazon rainforest and attend two major international summits
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Senate GOP selects Thune, House GOP keeps Johnson
Speed Read John Thune will replace Mitch McConnell as Senate majority leader, and Mike Johnson will remain House speaker in Congress
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Trump tests GOP loyalty with Gaetz, Gabbard picks
Speed Read He named Matt Gaetz as his pick for attorney general and Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence. Both have little experience in their proposed jurisdictions.
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Pentagon Discord leaker gets 15 years in prison
Speed Read Jack Teixeira, a Massachusetts Air National Guard member, leaked classified military documents
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Saudi crown prince slams Israeli 'genocide' in Gaza
Speed Read Mohammed bin Salman has condemned Israel’s actions
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Trump fills key slots, tapping Congress, MAGA loyalists
Speed Read The president-elect continues to fill his administration with new foreign policy, environment and immigration roles assigned
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Haiti council fires prime minister, boosting chaos
Speed Read Prime Minister Garry Conille was replaced with Alix Didier Fils-Aimé
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published