;)
The Commentariat -- September 30, 2021
Late Morning/Afternoon Update:
** Tony Romm of the Washington Post: "Congress on Thursday approved a measure to fund the government into early December, staving off a shutdown that was set to occur after midnight. The votes in the House and Senate followed weeks of hand wringing between the two parties, after Democrats initially sought to move the measure along with another proposal to raise the country's debt ceiling. Senate Republicans blocked that effort, leaving the country's ability to borrow unresolved just 18 days before the next major fiscal deadline. The funding stopgap sustains federal agencies' existing spending until December 3, at which point Congress must adopt another short-term fix, called a continuing resolution, or pass a dozen appropriations bills that fund federal agencies through the 2022 fiscal year. The new measure also includes billions of dollars to assist in responding to two recent, deadly hurricanes that battered the Gulf Coast and Eastern Seaboard, as well as other money to aid in resettling refugees arriving from Afghanistan. ~~~
~~~ [**] "Still unresolved is the fight over the debt ceiling, the statutory limit on U.S. borrowing. The cap allows the government to rack up debt to pay its bills. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has told Congress that her agency will run out of flexibility to avoid missing payments after October 18, at which point Washington would face the unprecedented threat of default unless Congress acts. House Democrats on Wednesday adopted a measure to raise the debt ceiling, but Senate ... Republicans have refused to raise the debt ceiling...." The AP's story is here.
Mike Lillis of the Hill: "Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) is pressing ahead with her plan to stage a Thursday vote on the Senate-passed infrastructure bill, brushing aside threats from liberals vowing to sink the proposal and expressing confidence it will pass. 'We're on a path to win the vote,' Pelosi said. 'I don't want to even consider any options other than that.' Pelosi has promised moderate members of her caucus a Thursday vote on the $1.2 trillion infrastructure package, which passed the Senate with broad bipartisan support last month.
The New York Times' live updates of Covid-19 developments Thursday are here.
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The Climax to a Dramedy of Errors Is Looking Like a "Thelma & Louise" Moment. Emily Cochrane of the New York Times: "Democrats in Congress moved on Wednesday to avert a looming fiscal crisis, scheduling a House vote to raise the debt ceiling and preparing a separate spending bill to head off a government shutdown looming at midnight on Thursday. The Senate could vote as early as Wednesday on the spending bill, which is needed to prevent a lapse in government funding when the fiscal year ends on Thursday and also includes emergency disaster aid. Republicans were expected to support it, after Democrats removed a debt-limit increase that the G.O.P. had refused to back. That left uncertain the fate of the legislation to raise the statutory limit on federal borrowing, which is on track to be breached by Oct. 18 if Congress does not increase it. House Democrats appear to have the votes to pass their bill, which would lift the cap until Dec. 16, 2022, but Senate Republicans have blocked efforts to advance such legislation in their chamber, where 60 votes are needed to move most measures. Still, the action on Wednesday appeared to pave the way to clearing the most immediate hurdle Congress faced, as Democratic leaders labored to resolve intraparty divisions that are threatening to derail President Biden's domestic agenda." ~~~
~~~ As Anderson Cooper of CNN said Wednesday night, "Nobody thought Thelma and Louise would drive off the cliff." ~~~
~~~ The NYT story has been updated. New Lede: "Democrats prepared legislation on Wednesday to avert a government shutdown this week, but they were desperately trying to salvage President Biden's domestic agenda as conservative-leaning holdouts dug in against an ambitious $3.5 trillion social safety net and climate bill that carries many of the party's top priorities. Congressional leaders moved to address the most immediate threat, working to complete a bill to prevent a government funding lapse at midnight on Thursday. Yet after days of intensive negotiations to bridge bitter differences in their party over Mr. Biden's two biggest legislative priorities, the president and top Democrats appeared as far as ever from an agreement on their marquee social policy package...." ~~~
~~~ Caitlin Emma & Jennifer Scholtes of Politico: "The Senate appears on track to prevent a government shutdown on Thursday at midnight, as Democrats and Republicans wade through last-minute impediments to a stopgap funding bill's speedy passage. Senators were close to finalizing an agreement on Wednesday evening that would tee up final passage of the short-term funding package on Thursday, just hours before federal cash expires, according to a source.... House leaders hope to quickly approve the measure after it passes the Senate. 'My sense is that we've got a lot of this worked out,' said Republican Sen. John Kennedy, whose hurricane-battered state of Louisiana would receive critical disaster aid through the bill. 'I always thought we would get to this point.'... The rush to avoid a shutdown comes after Senate Democrats ditched a provision that would suspend the cap on how much the government can borrow, through December 2022." ~~~
~~~ Update. John Nolen & Melissa Quinn of CBS News: "Senate Minority [Majority] Leader Chuck Schumer announced Wednesday night that an agreement to keep the government funded and prevent a government shutdown has been reached. "We have an agreement on the C.R. -- the continuing resolution -- to prevent a government shutdown, and we should be voting on that tomorrow morning,' he said on the Senate floor. The majority leader said he hopes to hold a vote on final passage by midday -- hours before government funding would have run out, at midnight Thursday."
Burgess Everett of Politico: “Joe Manchin released a statement on Wednesday afternoon panning his colleagues' spending plans as 'fiscal insanity.' Then he started to lay out how he wants to work on President Joe Biden's family plan. As all of Washington hangs on his every word, Manchin said he did want to clinch a reconciliation bill even as some progressives fear he's trying to kill the whole thing. But rather than approach the effort as the multi-trillion-dollar social spending and climate change bill envisioned by his colleagues, Manchin said Democrats needed to start with gutting the 2017 Trump tax cuts and go from there.... And for Manchin the timetable is months, not days or weeks.... 'This is why we're not voting for the bipartisan bill until we get a reconciliation bill,' [progressive leader] Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) told reporters. 'After that statement we probably have even more people willing to vote no.'" ~~~
~~~ MEANWHILE, freshman Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D[ingbat]-Az.) is out there winging it. When NBC News report Frank Thorp confronted Sinema in the hall and asked her what she would tell progressives who were "frustrated they don't know where you are," she said, "I'm clearly right in front of the elevator."; The dizzy-blonde act is not wearing well. According to Jack Healy & Emily Cochrane of the New York Times, "... Ms. Sinema is facing a growing political revolt at home from the voters who once counted themselves among her most devoted supporters.” I believe it was John Heilemann, appearing on MSNBC, who said that Arizona's other Democratic Senator, Mark Kelly, who is going along with the program, is receiving no blowback on the home front. "With great power comes great responsibility," Heilemann said, and Sinema, who has great power right now, doesn't seem to get that she also has great responsibility.
Jonathan Weisman of the New York Times: "Business groups and some Senate Republicans -- working at cross-purposes with Republican leaders in the House -- have mounted an all-out drive to secure G.O.P. votes for a bipartisan infrastructure bill ahead of a final vote on Thursday. Although the measure is the product of a compromise among moderates in both parties, House Republican leaders are leaning on their members to reject the $1 trillion infrastructure bill by disparaging its contents and arguing that it will only pave the way for Democrats to push through their far larger climate change and social policy bill.... How the conflicting pressure campaigns play out could determine the fate of the infrastructure bill. On Tuesday, liberal Democrats accused Ms. Pelosi of a betrayal for abandoning her promise that the House would not take up the infrastructure bill until after the Senate secured passage of the larger measure. While Democratic leaders are working hard to secure as many of those liberal votes as possible, they know defections will have to be made up by House Republicans." (Also linked yesterday.)
Alex Horton & Karoun Demirjian of the Washington Post: "President Biden's top military adviser told lawmakers Wednesday that the war in Afghanistan was lost through pivotal decisions spanning four previous administrations, offering his latest defense of the commander in chief whose order to end the 20-year campaign and the treacherous evacuation that followed have come under withering scrutiny on Capitol Hill. 'It wasn't lost in the last 20 days or even 20 months. There's a cumulative effect to a series of strategic decisions that go way back,' Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Mark A. Milley told the House Armed Services Committee during a rancorous hearing that further underscored the deep partisan split after last month's deadly exit from Kabul. He cited multiple examples, including the United States' decision to shift focus and resources from Afghanistan to Iraq, and never 'effectively dealing with Pakistan,' where throughout the war key U.S. adversaries found a haven." This is an update of a story linked yesterday.
Robert Burns & Lolita Baldor of the AP: "Senior Pentagon officials said Wednesday the collapse of the Afghan government and its security forces in August could be traced to a 202 U.S. agreement with the Taliban that promised a complete U.S. troop withdrawal. Gen. Frank McKenzie, the head of Central Command, told the House Armed Services Committee that once the U.S. troop presence was pushed below 2,500 as part of President Joe Biden's decision in April to complete a total withdrawal by September, the unraveling of the U.S.-backed Afghan government accelerated. 'The signing of the Doha agreement [in 2020] had a really pernicious effect on the government of Afghanistan and on its military -- psychological more than anything else, but we set a date-certain for when we were going to leave and when they could expect all assistance to end,' McKenzie said.... He said in addition to the morale-depleting effects of the Doha agreement, the troop reduction ordered by Biden in April was 'the other nail in the coffin' for the 20-year war effort because it blinded the U.S. military to conditions inside the Afghan army, 'because our advisers were no longer down there with those units.'" ~~~
~~~ Marie: What McKenzie is really saying here -- though perhaps he would not put it this way -- is that the Afghan government was always going to collapse almost as soon as the U.S. was not propping it up with troops and lots of cash. As in so many of our misadventures abroad, we were supporting a puppet government -- and paying dearly for it. Is the Taliban worse than the U.S.-dependent government? Well, yeah. But it's reasonable to have a difference of opinion on whether or not U.S. taxpayers can afford to support more than one government at a time.
Helene Cooper & Eric Schmitt of the New York Times: “Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III told a House committee on Wednesday that he had not supported keeping American troops in Afghanistan, for the first time publicly discussing the advice he had given before President Biden announced his decision to withdraw all U.S. forces from the country. But Mr. Austin included a key word: 'I did not support staying in Afghanistan forever.' The word 'forever,' officials said, sheds light on an apparent contradiction that has bedeviled the Biden administration since the president told ABC's George Stephanopoulos in an interview in August that his military advisers were 'split,' despite Defense Department recommendations over the years to keep troops in Afghanistan. On the second day of congressional hearings on Afghanistan, the House Armed Services Committee asked Mr. Austin; Gen. Mark A. Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; and Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., the head of the military's Central Command, many of the same questions that had been raised by a Senate panel on Tuesday." This is an update of a story also linked yesterday.
Jonathan Swan & Zachary Basu of Axios: "In a classified briefing with senators on Tuesday, Joint Chiefs Chairman Mark Milley directly blamed the State Department for a botched evacuation from Afghanistan, saying officials 'waited too long' to order the operation out of Kabul's airport, two sources with direct knowledge of the briefing told Axios..... Those private remarks were far more blunt than Milley's public testimony, in which the nation's top general said the issue of whether the order should have been given earlier is an 'open question that needs further exploration.'"
For the Birds. Lisa Friedman & Catrin Einhorn of the New York Times: “The Biden administration on Wednesday restored protections for migratory birds that were loosened under ... Donald J. Trump, a move celebrated by conservationists but expected to exacerbate tensions between the administration and the oil and gas industry. The move comes as some bird species have been disappearing from the planet. North America has lost almost three billion birds in the past 50 years, scientists said. In addition to suffering from habitat loss and climate change, they are killed by collisions with buildings, power lines and communication towers. They die in oil waste pits and oil spills. Deb Haaland, the secretary of the Department of Interior, said the agency will formally revoke a rule enacted in the waning days of the Trump presidency that shielded businesses, landowners and others from legal consequences if their activities unintentionally killed birds.... The Biden administration will return to a longstanding interpretation of the 1918 Migratory Bird Treaty Act that prohibits 'incidental' harm to birds, Ms. Haaland said."
Jacqueline Alemany, et al., of the Washington Post: “The House select committee investigating the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol issued subpoenas to 11 people associated with or involved in the planning of pro-Trump rallies that preceded the violent insurrection. The subpoenas announced on Wednesday evening by the committee come a week after the committee issued subpoenas targeting two top Trump White House officials, the chief of staff to the acting defense secretary, and longtime Trump adviser Stephen K. Bannon. Several of the newly subpoenaed are rally organizers -- including the founders and staff of the pro-Trump Women for America First group — who could face questions about reports that the group had concerns about the 'Stop the Steal' rally turning into an illegal and chaotic march on the Capitol. They may also be able to shed light on the degree to which the former president and his senior White House aides knew about their fears of chaos on Jan 6." A Politico report is here. The New York Times story is here.
Spencer Hsu & Rachel Weiner of the Washington Post: “A court sentenced two Ohio men to serve 45 days in jail Wednesday after U.S. prosecutors for the first time requested incarceration at sentencing hearings for nonviolent misdemeanor offenders in the storming of the U.S. Capitol.... U.S. District Judge James E. Boasberg ordered Derek Jancart and Erik Rau to self-surrender to the D.C. jail at a later date, saying all charges related to the insurrection were serious. 'You attempted with others to undermine one of our bedrock acts, which is the peaceful transfer of power following a democratic election,' Boasberg said, adding, 'There are few actions as serious as the ones this group took on that day.'"
Dave Sheinin of the Washington Post: "Three-time Olympic swimmer Klete Keller, who notoriously wore his Team USA jacket to the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol, pleaded guilty Wednesday to one charge stemming from his role in the riot. The felony charge of obstruction of an official proceeding carries a maximum prison sentence of 20 years, though sentencing guidelines call for 21 to 27 months. Keller, 39, entered the plea in a hearing before U.S. District Court Judge Richard J. Leon. As part of a plea agreement, Keller will cooperate with the government in additional prosecutions stemming from the attack on the Capitol in exchange for the government dropping the six additional charges against him." MB: To those of you inclined to think of super-athletes as heroes, this so-white boy illustrates why your accolades are ill-given.
Andrew Dalton of the AP: “A judge on Wednesday suspended Britney Spears' father from the conservatorship that has controlled the singer's life and money for 13 years, saying the arrangement 'reflects a toxic environment.' Superior Court Judge Brenda Penny agreed with a petition from Spears and her attorney, Mathew Rosengart, that James Spears needs to give up his role as conservator. The move is a major victory for the singer, who pleaded in dramatic hearings in June and July that her father needed to be out. 'The current situation is untenable,' Penny said after hearing arguments from both sides. 'It reflects a toxic environment which requires the suspension of James Spears.' James Spears sought the conservatorship in 2008 and had been its primary controller and biggest champion. He reversed course in recent weeks, asking the judge to end the conservatorship. Britney Spears and Rosengart agreed that the conservatorship should end and said in court documents that James Spears removal was a necessary first step."
The Pandemic, Ctd.
The Washington Post's live updates of Covid-19 developments Thursday are here.
Oriana Gonzalez of Axios: "The CDC issued 'an urgent health advisory' on Wednesday urging people who are pregnant or planning to become pregnant to get the COVID-19 vaccine.... The CDC said it 'strongly recommends' vaccination because its benefits for a pregnant person and the fetus outweigh the risks. It added that pregnant people with COVID-19 are at 'increased risk' of outcomes such as preterm birth, stillbirth and admission of a newborn into the ICU. The CDC is also calling on health departments and health care professionals to educate pregnant individuals on the safety and effectiveness of coronavirus vaccines."
Sharon Young of NPR: "YouTube is cracking down on the spread of misinformation by banning misleading and inaccurate content about vaccines. The platform announced the change in a blog post Wednesday, explaining that its current community guidelines, which already prohibit the sharing of medical misinformation, have been extended to cover 'currently administered' vaccines that have been proven safe by the World Health Organization and other health officials. The site had previously banned content containing false claims about COVID-19 vaccines under its COVID-19 misinformation policy. The change extends that policy to a far wider number of vaccines.... In its announcement, the company pointed specifically to videos that inaccurately describe what ingredients are used in vaccines as well as allegations that vaccines contain properties that can be used to 'track' those who receive them."
Beyond the Beltway
South Dakota. Lee Strubinger of NPR: "South Dakota's top law enforcement official says he is looking into a meeting that The Associated Press reports happened in July of last year among Republican Gov. Kristi Noem, her daughter, top officials and the head of a real estate appraiser certification program. The AP reports that the governor's daughter, Kassidy Peters, was initially issued a denial for her appraiser license. Months later, however, Peters became a certified residential appraiser. That is where Attorney General Jason Ravnsborg says questions are being raised. 'I have been contacted by concerned citizens and legislators,' says Ravnsborg. 'I am actively reviewing their concerns, and I will be following the steps prescribed in codified law in relation to those questions.' (A note on Ravnsborg: He recently pleaded no contest to a pair of misdemeanor driving charges for his involvement in a fatal car crash that killed a South Dakotan. That has led to Noem pushing for Ravnsborg to resign from office.)" The Washington Post's story is here. ~~~
~~~ Stephen Groves of the AP: "South Dakota Republican and Democratic legislators alike said Wednesday that they want more details from Gov. Kristi Noem’s administration about a meeting last year that included the governor, her daughter and state employees overseeing an agency that had moved to deny her daughter’s application to become a certified real estate appraiser. In response to the report from The Associated Press this week, the Legislature’s Government Operations and Audit Committee will look into the matter when it meets at the end of October, according to the committee chairman, state Sen. Kyle Schoenfish. The Republican governor has dismissed the report as an attack on her family, but lawmakers from within her party said they want answers from her administration about what happened." ~~~
~~~ BUT This is the most-read Story on the WashPo's Website Wednesday night. And, yeah, it's pretty hilarious: ~~~
~~~ Felicia Sonmez & Josh Dawsey of the Washington Post: "South Dakota Gov. Kristi L. Noem (R) on Wednesday dismissed a conservative media outlet's claim that she is having an extramarital affair with Corey Lewandowski, a former Trump adviser who is also advising Noem. 'These rumors are total garbage and a disgusting lie,' Noem said in a tweet. 'These old, tired attacks on conservative women are based on a falsehood that we can't achieve anything without a man's help. I love Bryon....' A conservative website, American Greatness, published a piece Tuesday claiming that, according to 'multiple' sources, Noem has been having an affair with Lewandowski 'for months.' The website did not identify any of the sources." MB: The headline doesn't let on who the supposed boyfriend is. When I read it was Lewandowski, I couldn't help LOL. I so hope this is not a “disgusting lie." But wait! There's more. ~~~
~~~ Alex Isenstadt of Politico: "A Donald Trump donor is accusing Corey Lewandowski, one of the former president's longtime top aides, of making unwanted sexual advances toward her at a Las Vegas charity event over the weekend. Trashelle Odom, the wife of Idaho construction executive John Odom, alleges that Lewandowski repeatedly touched her, including on her leg and buttocks, and spoke to her in sexually graphic terms. Odom said that Lewandowski 'stalked' her throughout the evening. Four people who were first-hand witnesses at the event corroborated Odom's allegations.... South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, to whom Lewandowski serves as an informal adviser, was also among the dinner's attendees." Read on for details of Lewandowski's (alleged) behavior toward Odom. MB: Gross.~~~
~~~ Update. Alex Isenstadt: "Corey Lewandowski ... has been exiled from [Donald Trump]'s orbit following allegations, reported earlier Wednesday by Politico, that he made unwanted sexual advances toward a major Trump donor. Lewandowski's roles advising Trump included overseeing the principal pro-Trump super PAC, Make America Great Again Action. But Taylor Budowich, a Trump spokesperson, announced on Twitter that Lewandowski was being removed from that job. 'Corey Lewandowski will be going on to other endeavors and we very much want to thank him for his service. He will no longer be associated with Trump World,' Budowich wrote." MB: The Boss can do it, but you can't, Corey. And for Pete's sake, even Trump probably doesn't fondle the donors.
Texas. John Wagner of the Washington Post: "Matthew Dowd, the chief strategist for George W. Bush’s 2004 reelection campaign, announced Wednesday that he is running for lieutenant governor of Texas — as a Democrat. In an announcement video, Dowd, who worked more recently as a political analyst for ABC News, takes aim at the Republican incumbent, Dan Patrick...."
Wyoming. Derrick Taylor of the New York Times: "The widespread attention surrounding the case of Gabrielle Petito helped the authorities find a body believed to be a man who had been missing since last month, in the same national forest in Wyoming where Ms. Petito's remains were discovered, officials said. Search teams on Tuesday found the body of a man fitting the description of Robert Lowery in Teton Pass, a heavily forested area in Bridger-Teton National Forest in Wyoming, according to Teton County Search and Rescue. The area is about 17 miles from where Ms. Petito's remains were found on Sept. 19. Mr. Lowery, 46, from Houston, was last seen on Aug. 20. A cause of death is under investigation, officials said."
Way Beyond
Canada. Rachel Pannett of the Washington Post: "A Canadian court has paved the way for billions of dollars in compensation to be paid to First Nation children removed from their families and placed into state welfare after a judge on Wednesday dismissed a legal challenge from the federal government. The Canadian Human Rights Tribunal had previously ruled that Ottawa 'willfully and recklessly' discriminated against Indigenous children living on reserves by failing to properly fund child and family services. The neglect was found to have pushed many of the children into foster care, leading the tribunal in 2019 to order Ottawa to pay about $31,000 to each child removed from home. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal government had appealed the judgment, but Canada's Federal Court sided with the tribunal, saying Ottawa failed to show its compensation ruling was unreasonable." The Guardian's report is here.
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Reader Comments (7)
Please stop calling them by their self-anointed name, "moderates". It's like calling the Mormons who first started allowing blacks into their church in 1979 as "enlightened". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_people_and_Mormonism. How is it that people still call fascist Republicans conservative? I was just listening to NPR and they did exactly the sloppy word use that we've come to expect with the Orangutan Liar and his Faux News. We have let them define us as Democrats, as college educated, as Boy Scouts, as feminists, as fellow citizens. We need to take back the words and terms. This is where Murdoch and his Moscow Mitch school Nancy, Joe and the good people.
Here's a great new video from Meidas Touch:
https://www.huffpost.com/entry/meidastouch-ad-trump-cult-kills_n_61557605e4b008640eb059bd
And what a treat to read such salacious scandal-like stories about Cory L., the little punk whose hands seem to be all over damsel's backsides and upsides ––-if ever one could imagine the least attractive sexual predator it would be Lewandowski. Trump dumps him? Heavens to Betsy, that's even more of a joke.
Meanwhile our congress is in turmoil –--it's crunch time. What happens will tell us exactly how much leverage we actually have. I wish I could be optimistic.
Meant to link this yesterday but don't think I did. If someone else did, apologies to all.
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2021/09/biden-afghanistan-exit-troops-milley.html
Thought it made good sense of the Afghanistan exit. Won't satisfy the carpers or all sides in the eager armies of Afghan exit finger pointers, but we all know that often sense is the last thing to satisfy...
https://www.npr.org/2021/09/29/1041625392/transmission-lines-are-vital-in-the-shift-to-clean-energy-but-theyre-a-hard-sell. To further my point: "Shifting the U.S. to clean electricity will require a lot more major transmission lines." If you put solar electric panels on houses and businesses and where the power is needed, why have transmission lines polluting up the sky? Because high paid centralized administrators and investors need to capture as much wealth as possible. This is little more than urbanites transferring shit like visual pollution to everyone else. Sort of like transferring soil and water pollution from agriculture to rural communities because cities and the people in them are so much more important and vital. Democrats may be more progressive, but their unintegrated, urban-centric thinking keeps their appeal down. For example, in Norway a conscious effort has been made to keep industry in smaller communities spread throughout the country; Sweden has been much more concentrated in supporting community development. Here you're either on the green bus or off the green bus, to paraphrase Ken Kesey. https://www.homepower.com/. Lots of good ideas have come out of Oregon; Ken and HomePower magazine were two. Don't forget either, Oregon was Linus Pauling's home.
It’s beyond outrageous that two senators, who represent about 2.5% of all Americans, are stifling progress on so many fronts, purely for self aggrandizement and enrichment. Outrageous. If there were any justice in the world, Manchin and Sinema would be banished to Rat Fuck World for life.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2021/09/30/porter-sinema-reconciliation-msnbc/
I said:
Yes, as Representative Porter says, it is all about people, but the problem is definitional.
Porter means the vast majority of Americans.
Manchin, Sinema and Republicans more generally think "people" means only the wealthy and themselves...
No wonder they can't govern. Doing so is not in their interest.
Here's a take from Digby's blog on Manchin and Sinema.
"They don’t want anything except to play this character that they believe will pay off for them, personally, down the road. When Manchin is Governor or a mouthpiece of the coal industry and Sinema has taken her exhausting narcissism to the Chamber of Commerce or whatever, they’ll look back on what they did as a success.
...you don’t go from a $15/hour minimum wage to her disgusting thumbs-down Senate floor display if you have any core beliefs. But Manchin is worse: he’s a narcissist and an ideologue. Manchin actually believes that things have to be done his way or the Republic will collapse–especially ironic in light of his opposition to voting rights legislation, which the Republic desperately needs to keep its democracy. He thinks he knows better than the overwhelming majority of the Democratic Senate caucus, the Democratic House caucus, not to mention most Democrats, a large majority of independents, and even a fair number of Republicans. His arrogance is astonishing in its scope."