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Joe Biden Is Succeeding

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David Brooks: “Presidents are judged by history, not the distraction and exhaustion of the moment. Did the person in the Oval Office address the core problem of the moment? The Biden administration passes that test. Sure, there have been failures — the shameful Afghanistan withdrawal, failing to renounce the excesses of the cultural left. But this administration will be judged by whether it reduced inequality, spread opportunity, created the material basis for greater national unity.”

“It is doing that.”

Democrats Confront Messaging Challenge

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Associated Press: “House Democrats are working to revamp their message, move on from the infighting and emphasize the bill’s marquee programs. Among them: Billions of dollars to pay for child care, reduce pollution, expand health care access and curb prescription drug costs for older Americans.”

“They are also trying to get the word out about the separate, $1 trillion infrastructure bill that Biden signed into law this week. House Democrats said they planned to hold 1,000 public events in the coming weeks — five for every member of their caucus — to tout the upgrades that will be coming to roads, bridges, public transit, internet and more.”


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McCarthy Delays Swift Passage of Social Spending Bill

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“House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-CA) delayed quick passage of Democrats’ social spending and climate change package late Thursday night by holding the floor for more than two hours in a filibuster-style speech,” The Hill reports.

Washington Post: “McCarthy used the address to attack Democrats over a broad range of issues, including border security and Afghanistan policy — prompting jeers from Democrats, some of whom left as he spoke.”

GOP Donors ‘Furious’ with McConnell

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Sen. Rick Scott (R-FL) told his colleagues this week top party donors were “furious” with the number of Republicans — including Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell — who voted for the bipartisan infrastructure bill, Axios reports.

The donors complained to Scott it was foolish for any member of their party to help deliver a win to President Biden.

CBO Estimate Released for Budget Reconciliation Bill

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The CBO estimate of the Build Back Better Act finds “that enacting this legislation would result in a net increase in the deficit totaling $367 billion over the 2022-2031 period, not counting any additional revenue that may be generated by additional funding for tax enforcement.”

The White House had previously estimated that enhanced IRS enforcement would generate $400 billion over the same time period.

Schumer, McConnell Turn Down Heat on Debt Limit

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“Chuck Schumer and Mitch McConnell clobbered each other incessantly during October’s debt ceiling standoff. Now, as a new December deadline approaches, they’re taking a slightly more conciliatory approach,” Politico reports.

Said Schumer: “We had a good discussion about several different issues that are all extent here as we move toward the end of the session, and we agreed to keep talking and working together.”

Hawley Drops Hold on NATO Ambassador

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Sen. Josh Hawley (R-MO) “has dropped his blockade of Julianne Smith, President Joe Biden’s pick to represent the U.S. at NATO,” Politico reports.

“It comes after he sought assurances that she would press European allies to boost their goal of spending two percent of their gross domestic product on their defense by 2024.”

The Terrifying Future of the American Right

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David Brooks: “Over the past few decades there have been various efforts to replace the Reagan Paradigm: the national-greatness conservatism of John McCain; the compassionate conservatism of George W. Bush; the Reformicon conservatism of the D.C. think tanks in the 21st century.”

“But the Trumpian onslaught succeeded where these movements have so far fizzled because Trump understood better than they did the coalescence of the new American cultural/corporate elite and the potency of populist anger against it. Thus the display of Ivy League populism I witnessed in Orlando might well represent the alarming future of the American right: the fusing of the culture war and the class war into one epic Marxist Götterdämmerung.”

Biden’s Immigration Policy Marred by Internal Rifts

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“The Biden administration’s immigration policy has been muddled by high-profile reversals and splits within the senior ranks, leaving the government struggling to counter a record number of migrants at the border and reliant on some Trump administration policies that President Biden pledged during his campaign to unwind,” the Wall Street Journal reports.

“Underlying much of the lack of cohesion is a rift at the highest levels of the administration over the broad direction immigration policy should take.”

Justices Will Likely Decide Biden’s Vaccine Mandate

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“President Joe Biden is betting that his unprecedented coronavirus vaccine mandate will prevail against a flurry of lawsuits aiming to strike it down. The legal battle is expected to reach the Supreme Court,” CNBC reports.

“Biden believes the mandate, which would make businesses with 100 or more employees require their staff to get vaccinated or face regular testing by Jan. 4, will cover about two-thirds of all U.S. workers and hasten the end of the coronavirus pandemic. The White House says legal precedent gives it the authority to act to respond to the ‘grave danger’ posed by the pandemic.”

Ron DeSantis Gets Everything He Wants

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Politico: “DeSantis called the special session in October to fight the Biden administration’s coronavirus vaccine mandates and after just three days the Florida House and Senate approved four bills that undermine President Joe Biden’s vaccine push.”

“DeSantis never made an appearance during the special legislative session in Tallahassee but used his huge political sway over the Republican-dominated Legislature to get his bills passed.”

About Political Wire

goddard-bw-snapshotTaegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire, one of the earliest and most influential political web sites. He also runs Political Job Hunt, Electoral Vote Map and the Political Dictionary.

Goddard spent more than a decade as managing director and chief operating officer of a prominent investment firm in New York City. Previously, he was a policy adviser to a U.S. Senator and Governor.

Goddard is also co-author of You Won - Now What? (Scribner, 1998), a political management book hailed by prominent journalists and politicians from both parties. In addition, Goddard's essays on politics and public policy have appeared in dozens of newspapers across the country.

Goddard earned degrees from Vassar College and Harvard University. He lives in New York with his wife and three sons.

Goddard is the owner of Goddard Media LLC.

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