Watch Live: Biden Brags About Bagging Manchin For Reconciliation Bill

Update: Watch as President Biden reads whatever his team has put on the teleprompter regarding the Democrats’ long-sought victory over Joe Manchin for the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.

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Now that Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) has caved on his vow not to raise taxes during a recession, all eyes are on moderate Democratic Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, who learned of the Democrats’ deal on Wednesday and had no immediate comment.

The new bill – the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 – includes $400bn in tax reform revenue, $396bn towards energy security and climate change investments, $300bn towards reducing the deficit, $200nb in drug price reform, and $64bn to extend Obamacare subsidies.

What’s more, the new package also closes the so-called “carried interest loophole” which allows investment managers to pay a 20% long-term capital gains tax rate on income received as compensation, rather than as ordinary income. 

Sinema made clear during negotiations last year that she doesn’t want to touch carried interest.

And while Democrats bragged that there were no dissenting voices over the Manchin deal at this week’s caucus meeting, it’s notable that Sinema wasn’t there.

“Sen. Sinema wasn’t joining us at this point,” said Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), adding that Sinema “cares deeply about things in the bill.”

Is @SenatorSinema on board? In the past, she’s resisted closing a corporate loophole targeted here. https://t.co/bhNZydoPC4

— David Axelrod (@davidaxelrod) July 28, 2022

When asked by Punchbowl News about Sinema, Manchin said the following:

“[Sinema] really was fighting hard on ‘No taxes.’ I think she was always hard on that. And I think that didn’t happen. She was adamant about not expanding the drug discounts to everything. And she got that modified, so that she gets a big input in this. Really big.”

Meanwhile, GOP minority leader Sen. Mich McConnell (KY) told Reuters that Republicans will fight the new reconciliation bill “as hard as we can.”

“What’s happening here is that Manchin and Schumer have reached an agreement that is absolutely horrendous and totally unnecessary given the inflation the Democrats have already created,” he told the outlet. “Now they want to pass job-killing taxes, as well as install socialist price controls, which will mean fewer people benefiting from cures. So that’s the issue that we’re headed toward, and it’s an unmitigated disaster for the country and we’re going to fight it as hard can.”

On Wednesday, he said the deal would “hammer workers and kill many thousands of American jobs.”

“Democrats have already crushed American families with historic inflation. Now they want to pile on giant tax hikes that will hammer workers and kill many thousands of American jobs,” he tweeted. “First they kill your family’s budget. Now they want to kill your job too.”

Democrats have already crushed American families with historic inflation.

Now they want to pile on giant tax hikes that will hammer workers and kill many thousands of American jobs.

First they killed your family’s budget. Now they want to kill your job too.

— Leader McConnell (@LeaderMcConnell) July 27, 2022

And so, until further notice all eyes are on Sinema.