WASHINGTON — Sen. Joe Manchin roiled his budget talks with Democratic leaders anew Wednesday, saying the latest inflation surge makes him “more cautious than I’ve ever been” about agreeing to federal spending increases that could drive consumers’ costs even higher.
The West Virginia Democrat, who single-handedly killed Democrats’ roughly $2 trillion, 10-year social and environment bill before Christmas, has been bargaining with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer over a new economic package that would be around half that size. But Manchin said grim new inflation figures meant the energy, tax and health compromise he’s been discussing with the New York Democrat must be reviewed.
“Everything needs to be scrubbed, anything that can be inflationary,” Manchin told reporters. He said that while agreed-on provisions aimed at containing pharmaceutical prices should remain, “Is there anything more we can do? I don’t know. But I’m very, very cautious.”
It was unclear what impact Manchin’s comments would have on his closed-door talks with Schumer, which have shown progress lately. But they suggested he believed the day’s inflation report strengthened his leverage in that bargaining and, beyond that, in winning enough Democratic votes to push any agreement through the tightly divided Congress. Unanimous opposition seems certain from Republicans, who say the emerging plan’s spending and tax increases would worsen inflation.
