Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin told reporters Tuesday that President Joe Biden’s Build Back Better bill was “dead” when asked about the status of renewed negotiations. Manchin preceded his remark by saying that “there is no Build Back Better bill,” adding, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
The centrist Democrat came out against the bill in December 2021, criticizing its size and scope amid decades-high inflation. His lack of support effectively killed any chance the bill had of passing the evenly-divided Senate, given Republicans’ unanimous opposition to it. Though Manchin did not support the House-passed bill and was unable to reach a compromise with his Democratic colleagues, he has not shut the door to potentially restarting negotiations in the future. He has also signaled support for several individual policies in the bill, including but not limited to climate change mitigation measures and universal pre-K.
One policy that Democrats are insisting be prioritized in any reworked package is the expanded child tax credit, which the party adopted in March 2021 which expired at the end of the year. Several Democrats wrote to Biden directly, urging him to push for its adoption, while some Republicans have even offered their own alternatives if the credit remains scuttled.
Messaging groups on both the left and the right have targeted Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin with ad campaigns, and the deluge shows no signs of slowing down. Throughout 2021, West Virginians have been bombarded with television, radio, and online ads urging them to contact Manchin with their stances on issues such as tax increases, child care, prescription drug pricing and abortion. As a potential tie-breaking vote in an evenly-split Senate, Manchin has pushed back on some of the furthest-left ideas proposed by his fellow Democrats, and has refused to eliminate the filibuster.
Political groups began blanketing West Virginia with ads targeting Manchin as early as May, according to the advertising analytics company Medium Buying. A left-wing group, End Citizens United/Let America Vote, spent nearly $1 million from May 4-June 22 on ads promoting the HR1 For the People Act. Manchin opposes that bill, but supports the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act.
WASHINGTON, DC – AUGUST 12: Adam Smith, End Citizens United, along with Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton and other voting rights advocates from across the country join to deliver a petition to the White House calling on President Biden to publicly urge the Senate to end the filibuster. (Photo by Paul Morigi/Getty Images for Stand Up America)
A right-leaning group, Maintaining Mountain Values, spent just over $100,000 during that time period on messaging against an infrastructure deal between Republicans and Democrats, according to Medium Buying. As debate over Build Back Better began to heat up, the group ran ads claiming that “America elected Biden, but got Bernie instead.”
On the left, the WV New Jobs Coalition, made up of the West Virginia Working Families Party, the Sierra Club, and the West Virginia Citizens Action Group, spent $250,000 on advertising shortly after Manchin announced his opposition to Build Back Better. The ad claims that the social spending package would decrease inflation.
In addition to traditional radio and television spots, many organizations targeted Manchin through Facebook advertisements. Groups like Americans for Prosperity, Business Roundtable and Susan B. Anthony List ran ads against Democratic legislation, while Patients for Affordable Drugs NOW and Future Majority promoted messaging in favor. Despite the state having only the 4oth-largest population in the country, advertisers spent the 25th-largest amount of money on Facebook political ads for West Virginia users between Sept. 27 and Dec. 25, according to the social media site’s disclosures.
The conservative America First Policy Institute (AFPI) jumped into the advertising fray on Dec. 15. It ran ads in every West Virginia radio market noting the Build Back Better bill’s impact on the coal and natural gas industries, as well as inflation and job off-shoring. AFPI’s messaging, which also included cable television and digital ad buys, was part of a campaign against the bill that included several conservative organizations. Shortly after AFPI began the media blitz, Manchin announced his opposition to the current form of the package.
“This has been a team effort, and it’s far from over,” AFPI President Brooke Rollins said in a statement to the Daily Caller. “Our goal at AFPI, and the goal of our Save America Coalition, has always been to use our resources efficiently and effectively to educate people about policies that would harm our way of life and that of American families, businesses, and workers. A proposal that would increase inflation, raise taxes, kill jobs, and prioritize the Chinese Communist Party over American workers is dangerous for everyone, regardless of party affiliation.”
Manchin’s office did not respond to the Daily Caller’s request for comment on the advertising efforts.
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said Sunday that Democrats were close to reaching a deal on the contested $3.5 trillion Build Back Better Act. Pelosi appeared Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union,” where she claimed that Democrats had “90% of the [reconciliation] bill agreed to and written,” having overcome longstanding disagreements between the moderates and the left flank of the Democratic Party.
Host Jake Tapper asked the Pelosi if the deal would be finalized before President Joe Biden leaves for Europe at the end of the month. Biden is scheduled to meet Pope Francis at the Vatican Oct. 29.
“You’ll have a deal by Thursday or Friday?” he asked the show’s guest.
“I think we’re pretty much there now,” Pelosi responded. “We’re almost there. It’s just the language of it.”
Pelosi noted that the size of the social spending bill was turning out to be less than projected, but still sufficient to bolster the president’s economic agenda.
Tapper then remarked that two deadlines on a House vote on the $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) had been “missed because of the progressives” who held the bill hostage until there was an agreement on the larger package.
“Wait a minute,” Pelosi interrupted the host. “There was no deadline that was missed because of the progressives. The deadline was missed because they changed from 3.5 [trillion] to one-half of that, and we’ve had to go in.”
Democratic West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin was set to meet Sunday with Biden and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer in Delaware to discuss the fate of the spending bill.
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American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame
American Family Association
American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame
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American Family Association
American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame
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American Family Association
American Family Association (AFA), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, was founded in 1977 by Donald E. Wildmon, who was the pastor of First United Methodist Church in Southaven, Mississippi, at the time. Since 1977, AFA has been on the frontlines of Ame
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