January 1, Democratic civil war heats up

The rift between progressive and moderate Congressional Democrats continues to heat up amid ongoing tensions stemming from the budget reconciliation package.

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.VA) announced that he wouldn’t support any bill that exceeds a budget of $1.5 trillion, effectively serving the rest of the Democrats with a rude awakening given the $3.5 trillion goal set by the Senate- and House-passed budgets.

The timing of his announcement, along with his comment dismissing the lofty spending plans as “the definition of fiscal insanity.”

“Inaction is insanity. Not willing to negotiate in good faith is insanity. Not fighting to have the critical investments that are needed is insanity. Trying to kill your party’s agenda is insanity,” Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN) said.

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-WA), the chairwoman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, accused Manchin, along with centrist Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ), of “blocking the president’s agenda, the Democratic agenda that we ran on.”

Manchin doubled down on the division, saying that he has never been a “liberal.”

“For them to get theirs, elect more liberals,” he said, noting, “I’ve never been a liberal in any way, shape or form.”

Source:

Manchin throws down gauntlet with progressives