Time

It’s All About Spending, Stupid. The Dems Blew Their Moment by Obsessing Over Taxes

After months of false starts and internal divisions, it appears that President Biden and Congressional Democrats are on the verge of agreeing to a spending package to address climate change, childcare, housing, paid family leave and to lower drug costs. The number currently being bandied about is somewhat less than $2 trillion, but what has changed notably is that the original, ambitious plans to pay for that spending with a range of higher taxes on individuals and corporations have been pared back considerably in the face of opposition from Senator Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Joe Manchin of West Virginia. Substantial increases in corporate taxes, capital gains taxes and income taxes also may fall by the wayside.