Do You Think A Bill Is "Bipartisan" Because Every Republican + 1 Or 2 Corporate Dems Back It?
The opposition came within 9 votes of toppling the French government yesterday over Macron’s arbitrary, extra-parliamentary decision to raise the retirement age by 2 years. 278 Deputies voted in favor of a no confidence motion that would have forced prime minister Élisabeth Borne and the rest of the cabinet to resign immediately. Protests in France have strengthened and are expected to continue. Conservatives in the U.S. don’t seem to be paying attention as they prepare to raise the retirement age in the U.S. as well.
Vance Cariaga predicted that terminal bickering in Congress is making an increase in the retirement age more likely here, claiming that has bipartisan support. Bipartisan support means all the Republicans plus Joe Manchin and two conservative independents Kyrsten Sinema and Angus King, who believe no one should be able to retire until they’re 70. (Life expectancy for African-American men is 68.)
That “bipartisan” tag is usually deployed to excuse the greatest evils— like the attack on Iraq, or more recently, Trump’s gutting of Dodd-Frank. In fact one of the corporate whores who voted to withdraw banking protections was, of course, fake Democrat Joe Manchin. Yesterday, Manchin was flipping out over Biden’s veto of another reactionary piece of legislation that passed with support from every Republican + Manchin and one other conservative Democrat. In his press release yesterday, Manchin was waving the “bipartisan” flag:
“This Administration continues to prioritize their radical policy agenda over the economic, energy and national security needs of our country, and it is absolutely infuriating. West Virginians are under increasing stress as we continue to recover from a once in a generation pandemic, pay the bills amid record inflation, and face the largest land war in Europe since World War II. The Administration’s unrelenting campaign to advance a radical social and environmental agenda is only exacerbating these challenges. This ESG rule will weaken our energy, national and economic security while jeopardizing the hard-earned retirement savings of 150 million West Virginians and Americans. Despite a clear and bipartisan rejection of the rule from Congress, President Biden is choosing to put his Administration’s progressive agenda above the well-being of the American people.”
On February 1, 2023, Senator Manchin led 50 bipartisan Senators in introducing the resolution to nullify the ESG rule. On March 1, 2023, Senator Manchin voted for the resolution and spoke on the Senate floor on its importance. On March 6, 2023, Senator Manchin published an op-ed on the dangers of promoting the ESG agenda.
Who could have guessed Manchin would be so anti-woke? Anyone. This is what Manchin and the Republicans are whining about: “a Republican effort to bar investment managers from incorporating climate and social considerations into their decisions” if they want to. “The rule that the president vowed to protect is an obscure investing principle known as E.S.G.— shorthand for prioritizing environmental, social and governance factors. It had been a widely accepted norm in financial circles for almost 20 years until Republicans recently started assailing it as ‘woke capitalism’ that injected Democratic and liberal values into financial decisions. More than $18 trillion is held in investment funds that follow the E.S.G. principle.
The Times reported that “Officials in Republican-led states have argued that the rule will lead to disinvestment in fossil fuel companies that provide tax revenue and jobs in their states.” McCarthy said Biden had sided with “woke Wall Street” over American workers. “Now— despite a bipartisan vote to block his ESG agenda— it’s clear Biden wants Wall Street to use your retirement savings to fund his far-left political causes.” McCarthy’s claim of bipartisan passage was because one conservative Blue Dog, Jared Golden (ME), voted with the GOP, as he frequently does. Other than Golden, every House Democrat voted against it. So the big question: will Biden veto the inevitable "bipartisan compromise" to raise the retirement age?
Most of the members of the Republican Study Committee are in safely gerrymandered seats where there is no effective accountibilty. However, there are a few members who do have to make a rational case to swing voters: Nick LaLota (NY), Kevin Kiley (CA), Andy Ogles (TN), Zach Nunn (IA), Brian Mast (FL), Brandon Williams (NY), Rob Wittman (VA), Mike Turner (OH), David Schweikert (AZ), Anna Paulina Lunas (FL), Richard Hudson (NC), Aaron Bean (FL), Mike Garcia (CA), Don Bacon (NE), Bryan Steil (WI), Nicole Malliotakis (NY), John James (MI), Tony Gonzales (TX), Ann Wagner (MO), Ashley Hinson (IA), Kathy McMorros Rodgers (WA), Monica De La Cruz (TX), Tim Walberg (MI), Andy Barr (KY), Jay Obernolte (CA), Bob Good (VA), Carlos Gimenez (FL). And... this is what Republicans are threatening the American people with if they ever get back into power:
