Centrist Democrats led by Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and progressives led by Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) are at loggerheads over how to move President Biden’s ambitious infrastructure agenda.
Manchin fired a shot at liberal colleagues Wednesday when he declared he will not commit to supporting a reconciliation package that progressives want to pack with their ambitious priorities.
Asked if he would commit to support a reconciliation package, Manchin said: “I’m not committing to that.”
“I’m not committing to anything,” he said. “I want to look at everything.”
“I want to make sure that we make good decisions, sound decisions based on facts,” he added, indicating that he wants to review the details of any legislative proposal before saying how he will vote.
Manchin, in an op-ed earlier this year, urged his Democratic colleagues not to rely on the special budget process to pass major bills with only Democratic votes.
Progressive Democrats in turn warned Wednesday that Manchin’s refusal to commit ahead of time to a reconciliation bill could scuttle any effort to pass a bipartisan infrastructure bill Manchin has been working on with a group of four other moderate Democrats and five moderate Republicans.