Joe Manchin gives Biden's infrastructure proposal a thumbs down

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

Source: The Week

The country's most powerful senator has spoken.

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.), a moderate Democrat who more or less serves as the 50-50 upper chamber's swing vote these days, gave President Biden's infrastructure proposal — as it's currently written — a thumbs down on Monday. In a radio interview with West Virginia's MetroNews, Manchin said raising the corporate tax rate to 28 percent, as envisioned in the plan, is just too high, though he did say he could get behind a hike to 25 percent.

The senator claimed he wasn't alone, either. "There's six or seven other Democrats who feel very strongly about this," he said. "We have to be competitive, and we're not going to throw caution to the wind."

It appears the White House is preparing to eventually push the bill through without Republican support, but they will need Manchin on board no matter what, so his stance is crucial. Still, the latest development wasn't unexpected. It's likely Biden's proposal will go through numerous changes over the next several months, and by the time it's actually up for a vote on the Senate floor, it should look significantly different. Manchin, it seems, is just kicking off the negotiations.

Read more: https://www.yahoo.com/news/joe-manchin-gives-bidens-infrastructure-171118013.html

[FarPoint]

1. Oh for FU*K SAKES....

[iluvtennis]

19. Ditto. nt

[DENVERPOPS]

51. Double Ditto

Just another little piss ant, finding himself in a position of power, keeps doing shit just to keep his face in the headlines and on the news.

An old girl friend called them "TWPC"......Teenie Weenie Peenie Complex men. Megalomaniacs, with gross insecurities, shouting bravado to reinforce their bullshit neuroses....

He can only see as far as his nose, and only can see himself in this huge world. He and numerous Republicans don't give a rats ass about the future, our children, our grandchildren, the environment, or frankly anything except themselves and their tiny little microcosms.

[iluvtennis]

70. Spot On DENVERPOPS. nt

[CaptainTruth]

23. +1000

[vercetti2021]

2. And I give him two middle fingers

Fuck you Manchin

[ebbie15644]

3. Raise it to 25% and cut loopholes and deductions

[blm]

6. ✔️

[blm]

4. Biden should've started at 30% to 'let' Manchin get

him down to 28%.

[msongs]

8. yep start at double what u really want nt

[Mr.Bill]

55. Maybe he did.

[Fiendish Thingy]

22. I wouldn't be surprised to see the house pass a bill with a top rate of 30+%. Nt

[ahimsa]

47. You may have correctly identified..

.. exactly what happened! Joe wanted 25 and started at 28.

[Deuxcents]

5. 28% is too much?!

He’s getting on my last nerve.

[Escurumbele]

14. He got on my nerves last year, I said it, and the defense team at DU would not have it

But there he is, causing havoc again...he does love the limelight...

[Rebl2]

54. Same here

Actually for several years

[BradAllison]

64. Now that he's middle fingering Joe B and not "those radical leftists" maybe the defense will drop it

But probably not.

[certainot]

50. these rw dems are scared of limbaugh's rotting worm-eaten corpse

maybe dems should tell him the dittohead army screaming global warming is a hoax are now the walking dead

those dumbshit conservadems are playing to a rotting corpse that will be gone by next election and they will be fucked

[msongs]

7. well Joe we can cut costs by not allocating any funds to WV. will that help? nt

[FBaggins]

57. No... he can't do that

That would require a budget that cuts out WV

And right now Biden can't get a budget without Manchin.

[CrispyQ]

9. All the hard work to win the Senate & one asshole can throw a wrench into it all?

Hurts more when it's your own side doing the obstructing.

[PoliticAverse]

10. The hard work was to prevent 50 others from doing the same. n/t

[Escurumbele]

17. Nope, the hard work was more than that, it was to keep a united front the same as repubs had

when they were the majority. With Manchin on their side, half of the time, it becomes 51/49.

That is why I said that 50/50 was not a real win when you have people like Manchin who has one foot in the republican party and one in the Democratic party. He seems to value "his republican friends" very much.

He is a real problem. I hope 2022 gives us a minimum of five (5) Democratic senators, I would rather have more, but at least five would make Manchin irrelevant.

[groundloop]

45. Actually Manchin votes with us 75% of the time.... which is much better than 0%

I agree, he's frustrating to deal with, but we are certainly better off than if his seat were in GOPer hands.

Also, I haven't heard whether or not there are proposals afoot to significantly raise the top marginal tax rate on the wealthiest Americans. IMO it should be at least 50% for the portion of income above $100,000,000.

[msfiddlestix]

56. And that is exactly correct.

and until the Dens elect at least a half dozen more Senators, we're going to have to be grateful for the 75% voting record a la Manchin.

[FBaggins]

58. Not one

Fifty one (or more).

[MFM008]

11. Attempting

To prove HE owns the senate....

[NewHendoLib]

12. fuck you, DINO Joe!

[Warpy]

13. Joe, I think you owe all of us an explanation for this

If you say the infrastructure doesn't need work, you are a fool.

If you think it can be paid for without tapping the people who can most afford it, the billionaires and Wall Street, you are a fool.

If you are just grandstanding, thinking you'll take over McConnell's position as ultimate Senate arbiter of everything, you are a dangerous fool.

So, Joe, which is it?

[bluestarone]

15. I'm fully in Joes (Biden) corner

But If it's 25% vs 28% then do the 25 and deal HARD TIME with Manchin later! We need to get things passed now!

[Hugh Bloody Bastards]

16. "Moderate" Democrat?

Well, as a foreigner, I suppose it isn't cricket for me to question.....

[Harker]

32. Sure it is.

Most of us have opinions on foreign doings whether we fully understand them or not.

Your observations count.

[PatSeg]

66. Welcome to DU!

We welcome your opinion!

[Hugh Bloody Bastards]

69. Thank you

I wish the hell I had both those mugs of beer in your reply, right now, as such might help relieve this blasted insomnia!

[PatSeg]

73. Sorry, wish I could oblige with the real thing!

You have my sympathy.

[dalton99a]

18. Moderate, my ass

[CapnSteve]

20. Time for Joe and Kamala to invite him...

...and the “other seven” to the White House to get them in line. And if they don’t respond to charm, then puppy play time with Major! 😁

[mountain grammy]

21. So disappointing,

and hard to see him getting behind a wealth tax either, but stranger things have happened.

[Fiendish Thingy]

24. Manchin thinks he is Prime Minister of America. Nt

[cstanleytech]

25. Manchin needs to be replaced because a 28% corporate tax rate is not to high especially to help

pay for major infrastructure which the corporations also use.

[Mysterian]

26. If Manchin gets replaced

it will be by a trump-humping republican. WV is a backwards, trump-loving hell-hole.

[cstanleytech]

27. I know but it never hurts to hope for a better Democratic candidate to replace him.

[Mysterian]

28. I remember Jay Rockefeller

and all the good things he did for this state.

The kooks are running the asylum in WV these days. When the state implodes, maybe the people will wake up and we can rebuild from the ashes.

[samplegirl]

29. He's not going to help

on anything!

[regnaD kciN]

30. Same as it ever was...

We get control of the White House and Congress, and we have to cater to the whims of our most conservative members. Republicans get control of the White House and Congress, and they have to cater to the whims of...their most conservative members. And so it goes

[Freethinker65]

31. Wouldn't be surprised if the 28% to 25% compromise is merely scripted political theater.

[SamsDrink]

33. Schumer needs to take him behind the woodshed

And knock some sense into Manchin. Labeling Manchin a moderate is a joke. He’s a right-wing wannabe that is a detriment to his constituents and the Country.

[madamesilverspurs]

34. Manchin's schtick is wearing thin.

[AllaN01Bear]

35. we definatly have a obstructionist here folks , he needs to go.

[Jon King]

36. What a dimwit, none of them will pay 28%, 25% or anything close.

Bunch of nonsense, these corporations have the best accountants. None of them will ever come close to paying the full 28%.

[Gaugamela]

37. Biden or Schumer or someone must have the dirt on this guy. Time for a friendly little LBJ chat

with the dossier sitting on the corner of the desk.

[SheltieLover]

38. Because coal miners in WV wouldn't want jobs created by Joe's plan, right?

[catchnrelease]

67. I was wondering same along these lines

If the thing can get passed and it creates new, better kinds of jobs for the miners, would it help turn more WV voters towards Democrats in future?

[SheltieLover]

72. I'd like to think so

But one never knows. They would likely give credit to the fake pres.

[Afrocat]

39. This doorknob licking, smooth brained, chud. What are the chances 25 will be too much by Wednesday?

[turbinetree]

40. Every time I hear / read his name I get a big fucking headache

and need to take four aspirins.........I am really tired of corporations not even paying there taxes now, and they use the same roads, bridges and whatever, it use to be fucking 90%...............JFC........

[gibraltar72]

41. Manchin needs to wake up with a horses head in his bed.

[BlueIdaho]

42. Are we really sure an actual Democrat can't win

In Joe’s home stomping grounds? His self serving, showboating bullshit is getting tiresome.

[Trueblue1968]

43. six or seven other Democrats who feel very strongly about this, I DOUBT IT. Give us name Manchin.

Tell the truth for once.

[BigDemVoter]

44. GODDAMN him.

[dsc]

46. what is galling about this is he is more than happy to tax people making 76k

at a 50% marginal rate the current marginal rate plus the 32% he insisted on for the stimulus. Yet corporations only pay 25%, that is actually considerably less than the marginal that a person making 76k pays.

[bluedigger]

48. I'm shocked.

[Joinfortmill]

49. My bet is he will come around once he makes a little bit of a fuss.

[Bristlecone]

52. I am starting to wonder if his role is media misdirection

He sure comes out against stuff a lot - in the media - then votes in-line. Maybe he is playing the heel so republicans can't properly strategize. And Maybe 46 has some 3D chess going on and Manchin playing is his bishop.

But then again, maybe Manchin is arrogant likes the attention and power/leverage.

[Galraedia]

53. Moron Manchin is fighting hard for that 3%

Seriously, bring the bill to a vote and let this a**hole get blamed and explain to his constituents that he thought a difference of 3% was worth voting against it.

[LudwigPastorius]

59. "We have to be competitive..."

Last edited Tue Apr 6, 2021, 02:21 AM - Edit history (1)

The same mantra has stagnated (or driven down) wages and allowed unfettered mergers and monopolization for 40 years.

The greatest expansion of the middle class, and a commensurate rise in wages for workers, occurred when the corporate tax rate was just above 50%.

"We have to be competitive..."

We ARE competitive, and we would CONTINUE to be competitive even if we raised the corporate tax rate 2 or 3 percentage points.

Data from https://www.pgpf.org/blog/2020/04/six-charts-that-show-how-low-corporate-tax-revenues-are-in-the-united-states-right-now

Competitive:






Manchin is spouting pure horseshit.

[YoshidaYui]

60. So is he a REPUBLICAN disguised as a Democrat?

It sure seems like he should be in their party.

[NullTuples]

63. He's not even a "swing vote", he just flat out wants to make Dems miserable.

[YoshidaYui]

68. sounds like a Republican to me

Maybe he needs to switch parties.

[Renew Deal]

61. If his biggest problem is the tax rate, then it seems easily fixable.

[seta1950]

62. There we go again

SH*T I hate this man

[Lord Ludd]

65. If we were any more competitive

Bezos, Zuckerberg, Musk & the rest of the robber barons would each be worth trillions, not mere billions (or hundreds of billions).

[Martin68]

71. I got blocked for criticizing Manchin so I guess I have to be very careful about expressing my

opinions about a Democrat that doesn't support Democratic policies. Uh, oh, is another block coming? Ouch!

[Evolve Dammit]

74. Raising the rates so Amazon and GE pay what we pay is not OK? WTF not?? They pay NOTHING

[Kid Berwyn]

75. Next time, make the CIT 50.

That’s nearer to what it was before Red Ink Ronnie.

[myohmy2]

76. I'm telling ya...

...Biden should start seriously fucking with federal monies and benefits going to West Virginia...

...and Bernie should start 'thumbs-downing' ANYTHING manchin wants...

...if things are going to stop for us because of manchin, then things should stop for everyone because of manchin...

...it's only fair...

[ripcord]

77. Senators aren't required to vote the party line and are allowed to think for themselves