Thank you.
Judy: New data out today shows
the U.S. Economy shrank for the
second straight order.
At the same time, Democrats are
logging a senate deal announced
late yesterday to affect
inflation while reducing the
deficit.
The agreement is a stunning
development after over a year of
negotiations failing to win the
support of Joe Manchin.
Stalling key parts of the
president's agenda in the
closely divided senate.
President Biden: The work of the
government can be slow and
frustrating, sometimes even
infuriating.
Then the hard work of hours and
days and months of people who
refuse to give up pays off.
History is made.
Lives are changed.
With this legislation, we are
facing up to some of our biggest
problems and taking a giant step
forward as a nation.
Judy: We will look at the
economy in a moment but geoff
Bennett has more on the
democratic deal.
What it does and how it came to
be.
Jeff: -- Geoff: It took a
compromise on what was the
president build back better
agenda and is now a $740 billion
spending package that Democrats
are calling the inflation
reduction act.
It allows medicare to negotiate
prescription drug prices and
extends affordable care
subsidies.
$69 billion in climate and
energy investments.
It raises the corporate tax
minimum to 15% for
billion-dollar companies and
Democrats say it will reduce the
federal deficit by $300 billion
over the next decade.
Joining us to break down the
policy had a politics is Laura
Lopez and John Bresnahan.
President Biden said today that
he is urging congressional
Democrats to pass this proposal.
This bill as quickly as
possible.
He says it's not perfect, but
the medicare provision that
would allow medicare to
negotiate the cost of
prescription drugs to lower
prescription drug prices has
been long opposed by the
pharmaceutical industry.
If this bill passes, that is
significant.
Laura: It's also something
president Biden has been pushing
at trying to encourage Democrats
to pursue as aggressively as
possible since last summer.
The white house has been arguing
this is a political benefit for
presidents down ballot.
Tough competitions in senate
races have long said that even
if they couldn't get this in
reconciliation they wanted to
pursue this individually because
of the fact that so many
democratic holsters argue that
this is a really big winner with
voters, particularly black and
Latino voters who support it.
And aarp supports it by 80%.
This is definitely, if it
passes, a big win for the white
house.
Geoff: Senator Schumer says they
intend to cap the price of
insulin.
How did senator Manchin get to
yes?
You had a long conversation with
him yesterday.
I asked the question because
back in December, he said he
could not support the bill back
better act.
He said he was not going to vote
for climate provisions because
he thought it would impact
record inflation.
Here's what he said today.
>> This is truly going to be
around inflation reduction.
I knew that we could get an
energy policy that worked
without raising taxes and adding
to inflation.
And I'm going to walk away from
that because it would be hard
politically so I did this.
This is a bill for the country,
not a bill for Democrats.
Geoff: What accounts for his
reversal?
John: You have to give Schumer a
lot of credit.
He stuck with it.
The two had a very good
relationship when Schumer became
the democratic leader a couple
years ago.
Schumer and mansion did not get
along with Harry Reid.
Schumer was a big plus.
The big moment in December when
mansion walked away from build
back better, a huge
embarrassment for the president
and for Schumer.
The moment early this year when
mansion refused to move on the
filibuster.
That was a big embarrassment
again for Schumer.
But mansion put out a statement,
I'm not walking away from the
table.
Chuck says I am but I'm not.
They kept talking and senator
Schumer said on July 18, mansion
reached out to him after he
announced the deal had fallen
apart and set I want to keep
talking.
They were able to come up with a
deal this week.
Geoff: This marks the most
substantial effort to tackle
climate change by the federal
government in recent history.
Reduce carbon emissions by
roughly 40% by 2030.
It's not quite what president
Biden set out to do but is it
close enough for this white
house?
Laura: The white house is saying
this is the most historic
climate change legislation that
has been passed to date.
Yes, Biden definitely supports
this.
The president highlighted the
fact that it is almost there.
His initial goal was 50%.
I was talking to senator Brian
Schatz today of Hawaii.
He thinks it is significant and
eventually industry with that
momentum can just eventually get
there.
This is a big thing that the
white house wanted, rebates for
electric vehicles.
Low income communities for
fighting pollution.
He talked about doing executive
actions but right now, those are
put on ice because a lot of
Democrats think the president
should not pursue now more
executive actions because they
don't want to disturb the
negotiations ongoing on the
hill.
They want to make sure that this
bill passes.
Geoff: Let's talk about the
hurdles that remain, senator
Kyrsten Sinema ducking and
dodging reporters as they try to
ask her questions when she left
the capital.
A couple of members out with
covid that will delay things.
How is leadership planning to
tackle that?
John: Senator cinema is an
issue.
He said all 50 Democrats would
be on board.
She would not say.
She plays this close to the
vest.
She had not done that previously
on build back better.
She was very concerned about tax
increases.
Mansion thinks she will be there
and support this.
On the covid issue, this is a
serious issue.
Majority whip dick Durbin came
down with covid, minor symptoms
and out until next week.
Senator Manchin was out this
week.
A couple democratic senators
just came back.
Another issue with Patrick Lahey
who fell and broke his hip.
He has had two hip surgeries and
his office says he will be back.
It's probably going to take
about a week.
It has procedural hurdles, it
has to be vetted to make sure it
comports with all senate rules.
A bunch of amendments get voted
on.
Possibly the senate can do it.
They can finish this.
They will have to come back and
vote on it.
It will probably take two weeks
or three to get this done.