Jmho but as far as
I think they can placate Manchin and get some dumbed-down version of it passed via reconciliation (if they are allowed to do a 2nd reconciliation this year). They can't do anything to it to get a single GOP vote because it has a D attached to it.
Agree there's always going to be GOP blowback based solely on the 'D' factor but (call me naive) I also think that any elected official with "political expediency chops" won't be so resolute in voting against a long-overdue infrastructure bill altogether; it depends on:
- how much of this 'infrastructure bill' do they view as
not infrastructure-related but more special interest pork barrel
- how
much of the above constitutes what you & Badger describe as 'dumbing down'
I think the idea of addressing the long-overdue issue of infrastructure remediation isn't altogether GOP-abhorrent (or shouldn't be), again I just think it's a matter of agreeing where to cut the wheat from the chafe (unless one goes into it thinking the bill's 100% pure to begin with). Myself, I don't know it there's any (e.g.) 'protect the Himalayan Octopus' special interest provision that's been slipped into it, I'm only thinking that there's the possibility of at least "if you can't get 6, take 5" compromise that sets the overwhelming portion of the bill in motion (with the outstanding 'pork barrel or not' issues to be hammered out later) and that it won't rest solely on Joe Manchen's vote (again, call me optimistically naive). Ramble reads clear as mud : ) but jmho.
