BECAUSE IT DOES SAY A LOT ABOUT
THE CULTISH POWER OF FORMER
PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP.
>>> FIRST LETS GET INTO
POLITICS IN WASHINGTON RIGHT
NOW.
THE $1.2 TRILLION BIPARTISAN
INFRASTRUCTURE PACKAGE RIGHT NOW
IS WHAT THEY ARE DEBATING AND
U.S. SENATORS ARE HAGGLING OVER
FUNDING OF THE $1 TRILLION
INFRASTRUCTURE COMPROMISE.
AND THE QUESTION IS, CAN THEY
GET BIPARTISAN SUPPORT FOR THAT.
JOE?
>> YEAH.
ITS GOING TO BE -- JONATHAN
LEMIRE, I GUESS THE BIG QUESTION
RIGHT NOW IS, AS THEYRE TRYING
TO MOVE TOWARDS AN
INFRASTRUCTURE DEAL, HERE YOU
FIND -- YOU FIND JOE MANCHIN
ONCE AGAIN IN THE MIDDLE OF
THINGS, TRYING TO BRING PEOPLE
TOGETHER, TRYING TO BRING
REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS
TOGETHER, COMING UP WITH
COMPROMISES.
MITT ROMNEY, OTHERS ALSO
INVOLVED IN THIS COMPROMISE.
BUT THE BIG QUESTION IS, ARE
THEY GOING TO BE ABLE TO GET TO
60, OR AT SOME POINT IS JOE
MANCHIN GOING TO BE PUSHED, I
THINK MOST LIKELY HE WILL BE
PUSHED INTO MOVING TO SOME OTHER
POSITION?
BECAUSE, DONT YOU GET THE
IMPRESSION ONE WAY OR EAT JOE
MANCHIN IS GOING TO SEE THIS
LEGISLATION PASSED.
>> IT DOES SEEM THAT WAY, JOE.
HAPPY BELATED FATHERS DAY TO
YOU.
MANCHIN HAS BEEN THE FOCAL
POINT, WHERE THE WHITE HOUSE IS
LEANING ON HIM.
HEARING IT FROM MORE PROGRESSIVE
DEMOCRATS AS WELL.
WE HAVE THIS BIPARTISAN GROUP,
AND THIS SEEMS TO BE A MAKE OR
BREAK WEEK FOR THIS POSSIBLE
INFRASTRUCTURE DEAL.
THE PRESIDENT, OF COURSE, HAD
BEEN OVERSEAS FOR MOST OF THE
LAST WEEK AND A HALF AND HAD A
LARGELY DOWN WEEKEND IN DELAWARE
AND HE HAS SAID W THIS IS THE
WEEK HES GOING TO REENGAGE ON
THIS.
CERTAINLY THIS IS NOT NEARLY THE
FIGURE THAT THE WHITE HOUSE
FIRST PUT OUT FOR AN
INFRASTRUCTURE BILL, THE HARD
STUFF OF HIGHWAYS, BROADBAND,
BRIDGES, THINGS LIKE THAT.
THERES HEAT FROM THE LEFT,
DEMOCRATS, SAYING WHY ARE YOU GO
GOING SOFT?
HES TRYING TO FOCUS ON GETTING
REPUBLICAN BUY IN ON THIS, THERE
MAY BE A PART, THE C.A.R.E.S.
ACT
ACT, THEY USE ONLY DEMOCRATS.
BUT HERE THEY WANT REPUBLICANS
ON BOARD, THEY WANT TO GET TO
10.
THATS WHAT WERE WATCHING THIS
WEEK.
>> ITS GOING TO BE A BALANCING
ACT.
SOMETHING WE TALKED TO AOC ABOUT
LAST THURSDAY WHEN SHE WAS ON
THE SHOW.
I HAVE BEEN REALLY STRUCK BY HOW
BERNIE SANDERS, ELIZABETH
WARREN, AOC, SOME OTHER
PROGRESSIVE LEADERS SAT BACK, OF
COURSE, YOU HAVE PEOPLE ON THE
RIGHT SAYING THEYRE CRAZY, OUT
OF THEIR MIND, IRRATIONAL,
THROUGHOUT THIS ENTIRE PROCESS,
THEY HAVE SAT BACK, ALLOWED THE
CONVERSATION TO ROTATE AROUND
JOE MANCHIN AND THE MORE
CONSERVATIVE MEMBERS OF THE
DEMOCRATIC PARTY AND HAVE HELD
THEIR GROUND AND REMAINED QUIET
FOR THE MOST PART.
BUT BERNIE SANDERS IS NOW
SPEAKING OUT, AND OTHERS ARE
SPEAKING OUT, AND THATS JUST
HOW WASHINGTON WORKS AND ITS
HOW IT SHOULD WORK.
YOU HAVE THIS BACK AND FORTH AND
YOU WANT TO MAKE SURE, IF YOURE
A PROGRESSIVE, AND OBVIOUSLY
THATS WHERE THE ENERGETIC PART
OF THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY IS, TO
MAKE SURE THAT YOUR PROGRESSIVE
BASE KNOWS THERES SOMEBODY
YOURE FIGHTING FOR.
YOU HAVE BERNIE, GREAT WERE
TALKING ABOUT MANCHIN NONSTOP
BUT WERE OVER HERE.
AND YOU HEAR THAT AND THINK OKAY
MAYBE THIS THING IS WORKING
TOWARDS A NEGOTIATED SETTLEMENT
WHERE BOTH SIDES ARE GOING TO
WANT TO MAKE SURE THEIR VOICES
ARE HEARD IN THE FINAL MIX.
WE MAY BE A COUPLE WEEKS AWAY
FROM IT, WHO KNOWS.
MAYBE A COUPLE MONTHS AWAY FROM
IT.
BUT IT DOES SEEM TO BE GOING IN
THAT DIRECTION.
>> JOE, YOU KNOW HOW THESE
THINGS WORK.
YOU KNOW JOE MANCHIN WELL,
YOUVE WORKED WITH THESE GUYS,
YOU MENTIONED HES FROM THE
LEFT.
HERE IS SENATOR BERNIE SANDERS,
TAKE A LOOK.
>> WHAT IS IN THE BIPARTISAN
BILL IN TERMS OF SPENDING IS,
FROM WHAT I CAN SEE, MOSTLY
GOOD, ITS ROADS AND BRIDGES, WE
NEED TO DO THAT.
THAT IS WHAT WE ARE PROPOSING IN
OUR LEGISLATION BUT IN MUCH
GREATER NUMBERS.
>> I WAS INTERESTED IN HEARING
FROM MY COLLEAGUE, SENATOR
SANDERS WHO SAID AT ONE POINT
WITH THE $6 TRILLION PACKAGE THE
LIST GOES ON AND ON.
THATS IT, ITS A $6 TRILLION
BAG OF PROGRESSIVE POLICIES.
OURS IS ABOUT CORE
INFRASTRUCTURE.
>> AND I GUESS THATS THE
QUESTION, WHATS GOING TO BE
ABLE -- YOU KNOW, LETS TALK 60
VOTES.
WE DONT THINK ITS GOING TO
GET -- NOTHING IS GOING TO GET
60 VOTES, I DONT THINK.
SO WE LOOK AT WHAT CAN GET 50
VOTES OR IF THEY DO CHANGE TO
55, IF THAT BECOMES THE NEW
NUMBER FOR FILIBUSTERS, WHAT
GETS THE 55 VOTES?
I DONT THINK THAT $6 TRILLION
PACKAGE IS GOING TO GET CLOSE TO
GETTING THOSE VOTES.
THE QUESTION IS WILL ENOUGH
PROGRESSIVES SUPPORT, YOU KNOW,
1 TRILLION, $1.2 TRILLION
INFRASTRUCTURE BILL TO GET THAT
PASSED?
>> YOU GOT THE DYNAMIC OF THE
SCALE OF THE BILL WHICH YOURE
SAYING CAN YOU COME UP WITH THE
GOLD
GOLDILOCKS FOR THE PROGRESSIVES
AND NOT TOO MUCH FOR OTHERS.
I THINK THE QUESTION IS THE
APPROACH TO FINDING IT.
YOU RUN UP THE DEFICIT AND DEBT,
DO YOU RAISE TAXES?
IF SO, WHICH ONES AND HOW MUCH?
BECAUSE A TRILLION DOLLAR MAY
NOT BE A $2 TRILLION BILL BUT
LAST I COUNTED A TRILLION
DOLLARS IS STILL A LOT OF MONEY.
SO THIS HAS TO GO THROUGH TWO
SEPARATE HURDLES, TWO SEPARATE
THRESHOLDS AND THATS ASKING
QUITE A LONG.
>> YOU LOOK AT THE TRILLIONS OF
DOLLARS, MIKA, THAT HAVE BEEN
SPENT OVER THE PAST YEAR AND
ITS GOING TO BE EXTRAORDINARILY
HARD EVEN FROM CONSERVATIVE TO
MODERATE DEMOCRATS TO GET MUCH
BEYOND THAT 1.2, $1.3 TRILLION
BECAUSE WHAT ARE WE STARTING TO
HEAR ABOUT MORE AND MORE?
YOU KNOW, INFLATIONARY PRESSURES
ON THE ECONOMY.
SO WITH INFLATIONARY PRESSURE,
THE DEFICIT GOING UP, THE
FEDERAL DEBT GOING UP, THIS IS
HAPPENING OVER THREE
ADMINISTRATIONS, AND THE
QUESTION IS, IS THERE THE WILL