By David Dayen, The American Prospect
A couple of days ago, I took to The New York Times to lay out a concept for thinking about the Build Back Better Act. We had a pandemic that exposed real cracks in our social policy, in areas like health care, family care, housing, and cash assistance in an emergency. We showed ourselves unprepared for a crisis, with another slow-motion crisis—our warming planet—looming on the horizon. So the imperative was to reduce these vulnerabilities for Americans with simple, meaningful, permanent programs, in ways that could earn back the trust of the nation.
After six months of wrangling, we have a framework from the White House on the Build Back Better Act. It’s unclear whether this includes everything that will be in the final bill (in particular, drug prices and the state and local tax deduction are big wild cards), when the final bill text will be produced, and whether all 50 Democratic senators are on board (neither Joe Manchin nor Kyrsten Sinema has actually said that they would vote for this). It seems pretty clear that a framework, by itself, won’t be enough to get the House to pass the bipartisan infrastructure bill, although that’s what will be asked of progressives today; in fact, that appears to be the purpose of this announcement.
But this is close enough to the final tally for the Biden agenda that we can assess it. There will be a lot of focus on what didn’t make the cut; paid family and medical leave and Medicare negotiation of prescription drug prices are the biggest omissions. But what about what’s in here? Does it cohere to this standard of building back better?
Recent Posts
Then and Now: Anti-War Activism In 1968 And 2024
May 7, 2024
Take Action Now The real foundation was that people escaped from cynicism into the elation, turmoil, rage, and passion of believing there is a…
“You Have Been Warned”: Republican Senators Threaten ICC Prosecutor Over Possible Israel Arrest Warrants
May 7, 2024
Take Action Now Read the full letter, obtained by Zeteo, which threatens sanctions in defense of Netanyahu. By Team Zeteo and Mehdi Hasan, Zeteo…
Ten Years After The Flint Water Crisis, Distrust And Anger Linger
May 6, 2024
Take Action Now A city is forever changed, and so is residents’ relationship with their water. The betrayal of trust by the institutions meant to…
New Era Of Inequality: Billionaires Pay Less In Taxes Than The Working Class
May 6, 2024
Take Action Now Economist Gabriel Zucman’s analysis reveals that for the first time, U.S. billionaires have a lower effective tax rate than…