A US Democratic senator who has been a political thorn in the side of the White House has startled Washington by revealing his surprising support for the main priority of President Joe Biden.
Joe Manchin says he now supports a bill to increase corporate taxes, combat climate change, and reduce the cost of pharmaceuticals.
The West Virginians previously opposed the measure out of concern that increased expenditure would exacerbate inflation.
The bill’s passage would represent a significant legislative success for Mr. Biden.
Restoring a crucial component of his domestic agenda might also provide a much-needed electoral boost for his fellow Democrats, who are fighting to preserve control of Congress ahead of the November midterm elections.
This law, if passed, will be historic, stated the president.
Mr. Manchin provided little information in a joint statement issued Wednesday evening with Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer.
Democrats first proposed a $3.5tn (£2.9tn) version of the measure, but the now agreed-upon package is thought to be far more modest.
Mr. Manchin and Mr. Schumer stated that it would assist the United States to reduce its carbon emissions by around 40 percent by 2030.
The measure would allocate $369 billion for climate programs, including tax incentives for solar panels, wind turbines, and electric vehicles, and for mitigating the negative effects of pollution on low-income regions.
Mr. Schumer said in a statement, “By a large margin, this proposal will be the greatest pro-climate legislation ever passed by Congress.”
Mr. Manchin and Mr. Schumer also asserted that the measure would be self-financing by raising $739 billion (£608 billion) over the course of a decade by increasing the corporate minimum tax on large corporations to 15 percent, bolstering Internal Revenue Service tax enforcement, and allowing the government to negotiate prescription drug prices.
President Biden needs the support of all 50 Democratic senators, as well as the tie-breaking vote of Vice President Kamala Harris, to pass the bill through the Senate and send it to the House, where Democrats control a razor-thin majority.
If passed, the legislation would be a big victory for the president, enshrining a number of his major policy objectives in law and providing an opportunity to salvage a domestic economic program that has stagnated in recent months due to failed negotiations.
The package is still much less than what the White House had planned to accomplish with its original $1.9tn Build Back Better initiative – an ambitious proposal to reform the health, education, climate, and tax laws of the United States.
Mr. Manchin announced on Wednesday that the previous plan, which languished in the Senate for several months with an unknown future, is now “dead.”
It is unclear what precipitated the senator from West Virginia’s sudden decision to endorse the new bill. He represents a conservative state that voted heavily for former President Donald Trump, making him something of a political outlier.
The 74-year-old tested positive for coronavirus earlier this week. The senator, who is fully immunized, tweeted that he was experiencing moderate symptoms.
A mere two weeks ago, the senator infuriated the White House by stating that he could only support the proposal’s provisions about pharmaceutical costs and healthcare subsidies.
Mr. Manchin stated on Wednesday evening, “I have worked carefully to solicit opinion from all sides.”
Previously, he has expressed worry that measures encouraging the development of clean energy without growing fossil fuel production could harm the United States by increasing its reliance on imports.
Tens of thousands of people are employed by oil and gas businesses in West Virginia, and over the past five years, Mr. Manchin has earned $875,000 (£718,000) in political contributions from the industry.
Mr. Schumer intends to pass the bill with 51 votes through a financial maneuver that would allow him to avoid regulations requiring 60 of 100 senators to support the bill. If every Democrat in the evenly divided chamber supports the legislation, it will pass.
Mr. Schumer stated that the Senate will consider the bill next week. Later in August, the House of Representatives could potentially consider the proposal.
Senator Kyrsten Sinema, a moderate Arizona Democrat who has obstructed President Biden’s agenda in the past, might yet derail the idea. Wednesday night, she declined to comment on the agreement news.
In April, it was reported by US media that Ms. Sinema informed Arizona business leaders that she was “opposed to raising the corporate minimum tax rate.
Republicans, who had previously attempted to recruit Mr. Manchin to their party, criticized him.
Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina stated, “I cannot believe that Senator Manchin is consenting to a large tax hike in the name of climate change while our economy is in a recession.”
Before last year’s climate conference in Glasgow, Mr. Biden pledged that by 2024, the United States will pay $11.4 billion (£9.35 billion) annually in climate finance to help developing countries combat and prepare for climate change.
However, in March he was only able to get $1 billion from Congress, a third higher than the spending during the Trump administration.
