Manchin Under Pressure After Bernie Budget Blowout

BIDEN: The highest tax rate is 35%, number one. K? Number two, you’re in a circumstance where corporate America is not paying their fair share, and I come from the corporate state of the world, Delaware. More corporations in Delaware than every other state in the union combined. K? And here’s the deal, though. You have 55 corporations, for example, in the United States of America making over $40 billion (whispering) don’t pay a cent.

Not a single little red cent. Now, I don’t care, I’m a capitalist. I hope you can be a millionaire or billionaire. Not a problem. But at least pay your fair share, chip in a little bit.

BUCK: Socialism slogan about the “pay your fair share,” as if that has any real meaning. Welcome to Clay and Buck show. I would think somebody in the Biden comms shop in the White House would say, “Stop doing the weird whisper, stop doing the weird whisper thing.” But he thinks that that connects, I guess, or adds some umph to whatever it is he’s saying. Forty billion, he says, not a dime of taxes paid on that for 55 corporations. Remember, friends, first of all, they’re talking about spending three and a half trillion dollars. So, even if you were to do a hundred percent taxation of the $40 billion from those 55 corporations, that will just pay for like a little bit of the AOC climate change package part of the spending bill if it goes through as the Democrats want it to.

That brings us to, well, and they’re still saying it costs nothing which it’s just a lie. People, I would think more people to in this country would actually be offended by the brazenness and the stupidity of that lie. And maybe that’s part of what is holding back some of these moderate Democrats who don’t want to go along with. It they recognize that the American people are saying, wait. What are they trying to sell us on? Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema at the center of all this, and Manchin under a lot of pressure, Sinema under a lot of pressure but Manchin reportedly earlier this week thinking about possibly still caucusing with Democrats but becoming an independent. That was at least said and seems plausible. Here he is speaking to this issue in some way.

MANCHIN: The only thing that was ever said, ever talked about, if I’m an investor to my Democrat colleagues, my caucus, the president being the Democrat, he of the Democrat Party, Chuck Schumer and all them, and I said me being a moderate, centrist Democrat, if that causes you a problem, let me know and I’d switch to be an independent, but I’d still be caucusing with Democrats.

BUCK: So that was — those are real —

CLAY: That was the real thing.

BUCK: That was true. Remember when people said, oh, no, that’s not true, as soon as it came out? No, it is true.

CLAY: And I think if you follow the logic there, I think Manchin, if he’s going to run in 2024, is not going to be able to able to run as a Democrat. I think the brand is so toxic in West Virginia, there’s no way he could get reelected, particularly in 2024.

BUCK: Like, what does this mean for him for now? Does it mean he goes along, or does he hold the line?

CLAY: Well, you know, there’s a good story that he and Bernie really got into it. So, and Bernie said, I want six trillion, and Manchin said, I’m comfortable with zero. And, by the way, Buck, in the last 15 minutes or so the White House has said there’s no word about any agreement coming today; so they’re gonna continue to work through the weekend. And that’s significant, Manchin saying, “I’m comfortable with zero.” Remember, he wrote an editorial at the Wall Street Journal calling for a strategic pause meaning let’s not do anything let’s wait and see what happens with inflation let’s pus the infrastructure bill and then wait and see in terms of the budget what make sense.

I’m increasingly wondering whether he may take this over into the new year. Now, that becomes difficult for Democrats because what are they gonna be able to run on in 2022? Because the idea of passing a budget with big tax increases in an election year I think gets tougher and tougher to justify, which makes me think it’s possible this whole thing just becomes unraveled. I mean, it’s possible.

BUCK: I mean, think about what that would mean for the Democrats’ prospects going into the midterms. If they don’t pass this thing they’re essentially inviting, they’re inviting a wipeout in the midterms, which means, let’s all understand, the Biden administration also basically gets nothing done for the last two years. Remember, it’s not like the agenda items will get through if you have Republicans take a big solid majority in the House in the midterms. All this stuff is a long ways away, and they’re cagey authoritarians, and I understand there’s a lot that they’re gonna try to pull, but it is not looking good for them right now and that’s why Biden’s town hall last night we’ve been pulling some of the sects from it just the key moment, he’s got disdain for the unvaccinated, doesn’t care about people being fired who are first responders, cops, firefighters, you name it, who don’t want to get the shot, doesn’t care about the fact that he hasn’t been to the border; says he’s too busy. Clay, this is not a guy who could look on his first year and say anything other than, next year better be better.

CLAY: Well, and a lot of these viral clips that are spreading on social media he freezes with his hands sort of in fists, like, what’s going on there? He can’t remember the name of Long Beach. I mean, it was an ugly performance for Joe Biden beyond a shadow of a doubt, even with CNN basically propping him up with a laugh track.