The Painfully Simple Future of Joe Biden’s Agenda

It all comes down to the Senate.

President Joe Biden with a group of senators including Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema. Source: Slate

With one word, Joe Manchin threw a wrench into the plans of congressional Democrats last week. He announced that he wanted a “pause” on Democratic negotiations over a $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill to enact the president’s agenda. This announcement reflected Manchin’s general uneasiness about the bill’s high price tag. It also greatly…