Source: Lindsey McPherson, ROLL CALL, 9/2/21


Democrats should “hit the pause button” on their still-developing $3.5 trillion reconciliation package, according to one of the party’s key swing votes, West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin III. In remarks made Wednesday at the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce’s 2021 business summit and in a Thursday op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, Manchin said there are too many economic unknowns at present to warrant rushing ahead with such an expansive measure. He cited the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the initial economic recovery that led to inflation spikes, and the recent U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan as reasons to hold off on spending another $3.5 trillion when the national debt is already approaching $29 trillion.

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