Deal Strengthens the Middle

Maybe some day Annie Kuster will be as much a household name as Alexandria Ocasio Cortez.

Rep. Kuster (D-New Hampshire) is a leader in the New Democrat Coalition, a group of moderate Democrats that has announced its early support for the budget deal between Pres. Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy that would avert a government default. Kuster is their spokesperson on the deal.

In fact, if this agreement passes it will be because reasonable people in both parties put the long-term best interests of the country ahead of any single issue. Moderate Republican Sen. Mitt Romney has also said he will support the bill.

The hard-left and hard-right are already attacking elements of the plan and it doesn’t appear that Biden or McCarthy are counting on their votes in any event. The right doesn’t think that the budget cuts go nearly deep enough, but they think defense spending won’t be high enough. The bill would limit defense increases to 3.3% next year when inflation has run closer to 5%. They also wanted to eliminate all of the $80 billion in new funding for the IRS to go after rich tax cheats. Instead, it was trimmed by only $10 billion.

Meanwhile, the left doesn’t like expedited approval of a natural gas pipeline through West Virginia or streamlined approval processes for energy projects in general. They also don’t like expanded work requirements for two social safety net programs.

I don’t know about the expedited approvals generally (I’ve been opposed to a massive power line tearing up the Driftless), but the pipeline in West Virginia would be a small price to pay if it helps reelect Sen. Joe Manchin. I’m not necessarily a fan of Manchin except for the fact that he’s a Democrat who finds a way to win in a state that Donald Trump carried by 39 points. He’s up next year and Democrats will have to keep his seat if they’re to have a chance of holding a Senate majority. So, would I support a single project that might contribute insignificantly to climate change in exchange for keeping in power the party that recently passed the most massive investment in climate change fighting in history? Yes. Yes, I would.

As for the work requirements, this is a classic liberal disconnect. Work requirements for government benefits are overwhelmingly popular. An advisory referendum on that question in Wisconsin last April won three-to-one — and even in an election where the big draw saw the liberal Supreme Court candidate beat her conservative challenger overwhelmingly. Moreover, the changes are insignificant. If you get food stamps or Temporary Aid for Needy Families and you’re not disabled and without dependents you’re already required to look for work or enroll in a training program. It’s just that the requirement doesn’t apply to anyone fifty or older. Now those who are up to age 55 would have to do so. This is not “cruel” as the hard-left has characterized it. There are even exceptions for veterans and homeless people and the new age limits are phased in over three years.

Frankly, I’m pleasantly surprised at how little Biden had to give up to get to ‘yes’ with McCarthy. The hard-left should see this as a victory compared to what it could have been. But they won’t. Ideologues do what ideologues do.

If you want to read more about what’s in the bill you can find a pretty thorough analysis in a New York Times article here.

The country will be saved from default, and all the bad things that would result from it, by moderates in both parties. It’s important that that reality is repeated, echoed, shouted from the hill tops, printed on tee shirts and coffee mugs. Progress is made by the likes of Annie Kuster. Say her name.