Progressives vs. Pelosi vs. Sinema?
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One of the most surprising things, in my opinion, to happen politically since Trump left office is the fact that progressives are not just rolling over now that establishment Democrats are trying to go back on their word on voting on the $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill at the same time as the $1 trillion infrastructure bill. This would mean abandoning the needs of the American people since there would be little motivation for corporate Democrats to vote for the social-based reconciliation plan if they’ve already made their donors happy by passing the infrastructure bill.
Pelosi pledged to bring the “bipartisan” (pro-corporate) infrastructure bill and the (mostly pro-people) reconciliation bill up for a vote at the same time. Now she says she can’t because of those mean old moderates.
Sinema is the most vocal opponent, but there are other Dems who privately are saying they don’t want to vote for it either. They’ve already been trying to water the originally $6 trillion reconciliation bill, down to $3.5 trillion, and now saying it needs to go even lower.
The idea behind voting on the infrastructure bill and bipartisan bill at the same time is that if they only pass the infrastructure (corporate handout) bill, there’s no way in hell the Senate will pass, or even consider, the social-program focused reconciliation bill.
But progressives, led by Squad Member Pramila Jayapal, are very vocally saying they will not vote for the infrastructure bill if the reconciliation bill isn’t also voted on at the same time. Joining the charge is Bernie Sanders, with a clear call to progressives in the House not only to push for the reconciliation bill to be considered at the same time, but to actually vote *against* the infrastructure bill if Pelosi and House Dems go back on their pledge to not do one without the other.
A surprisingly strong move to go on offense against corporate Dems. The question is, who will blink first?
If history is any guide, the progressives will. Trillions of dollars are at stake for corporations and the politicians they fund. They’re not going to go down easily. But then again, progressives haven’t been this strong in decades, and are coming off the public win by Cori Bush to get the eviction moratorium extended for millions of Americans after corporate Dems let it expire without a fight. This would be a historic win for progressives.
So what do you think? We should find out by the end of the week. Here’s to hoping progressives can stick it out and show that Congress can occasionally serve the people who elect them. 🤞
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