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Democrats celebrated last week after the House passed a $1 trillion Senate-backed bipartisan infrastructure bill, which President Joe Biden will soon sign into law.
But the bipartisan infrastructure package was just one of a two-bill set for Biden's ambitious infrastructure goals. The other bill, the Build Back Better Act (BBB), allocates funds for "soft" infrastructure, such as childcare and medicare expansion, funds for battling the climate crisis, and lowered drug prices.
For months, Democratic senators have been wrangling to reach a final version of the bill, which has no Republican support and must pass through the reconciliation process to skirt the Senate filibuster. With an evenly divided Senate and Vice President Kamala Harris breaking any ties, every Democratic senator has to be on board.
As a result, BBB has been repeatedly slashed from allocating $6 trillion to $3 trillion to $1.75 trillion over 10 years. This hasn't yet mollified conservative Democrats like Joe Manchin of West Virginia, a big oil beneficiary who continues to stall the bill's passage under the guise of fiscal responsibility.
Manchin's opposition has led Democratic voters to deem him a functional Republican, also citing his aversion to any and all reforms of the Senate filibuster as well.
As such, Manchin is getting high praise from Republicans—most recently from GOP megadonor and Home Depot founder Ken Langone in an appearance on CNBC's The Squawk Box.
Watch below.
GOP mega-donor and Home Depot co-founder Ken Langone today: \u201cThank God for Joe Manchin .. I\u2019m going to have one of the biggest fundraisers I\u2019ve ever had for him. He\u2019s special, he\u2019s precious. He\u2019s a great American.\u201dpic.twitter.com/cHbXbMAcUG— Ron Filipkowski (@Ron Filipkowski) 1636592357
Langone said:
"Thank God for Joe Manchin. The guy's got guts and courage and he did what he had to do and he'll continue to do what he has to do. ... I tell ya right now, he's a Democrat and I'm a Republican. I'm gonna have one of the biggest fundraisers I've ever had for him. He's special, he's precious, he's a great American."
Manchin getting support from Langone—who donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to Republican candidates and PACs last year alone—told Democrats everything they needed to know.
When Republicans are fundraising for you then we know you\u2019re really one of them. @Sen_JoeManchin is NOT a Democrat. He never will be.https://twitter.com/ronfilipkowski/status/1458600180706689024\u00a0\u2026— Dr. Ginny McDonald (@Dr. Ginny McDonald) 1636640677
Billionaires praising Manchin for blocking legislation that would help average Americans.— BM77 (@BM77) 1636593911
Confirmed that Joe Manchin was bought— AvA \ud83c\udf0e (@AvA \ud83c\udf0e) 1636593946
Translation: Manchin is bought and paid for.— Jeff Dannenberg (@Jeff Dannenberg) 1636592462
And that, friends, tells you everything you ever need to know about Joe Manchin.— Max Burbank (@Max Burbank) 1636593329
Others vowed never to patronize Home Depot.
I've flipped 5 houses in the past few years. I've spent thousands and thousands of dollars at Home Depot.\n\nNot anymore.— This Is Fine (@This Is Fine) 1636595146
Again, confirming why I don\u2019t shop at Home Depot.https://twitter.com/ronfilipkowski/status/1458600180706689024\u00a0\u2026— \ud83c\uddf2\ud83c\uddfd Linda \ud83c\uddf5\ud83c\uddf1 (@\ud83c\uddf2\ud83c\uddfd Linda \ud83c\uddf5\ud83c\uddf1) 1636600182
No more HOME DEPOT for me!pic.twitter.com/MNojy3ONk3— questioneverything (@questioneverything) 1636595844
He won\u2019t do it with any profits from me. I\u2019ve refused to shop there (and Walmart, Hobby Lobby, Chik-fil-A) for years for this exact reason.https://twitter.com/ronfilipkowski/status/1458600180706689024\u00a0\u2026— The True American (@The True American) 1636593269
A self-professed Democrat in the red state of West Virginia, Manchin's seat is probably safe as long as he continues to stall the party's agenda.