The unique perspective and provocative opinions of Joe O’Neill
Dem Notes
“We can’t turn it back very much, but we can prevent it from getting worse. We don’t have any more time.”—President Joe Biden, on the impact of climate change. But it could be worse. We could still have Trump as a science-defying president, Rick Perry as the clueless Energy Secretary and (Administrator) Andrew Wheeler and his pro-fossil industry-lobbyist rat pack undermining the critical role of the EPA.
President Biden, of course, is urging the Taliban to cut ties with terrorist groups. How problematic will that be? Not an encouraging sign when the acting interior minister (Sirajuddin Haqqani) is on the FBI’s most wanted list for terrorism. It’s also hoped that the new Afghan government will be at least nominally inclusive. So far, it has, in effect, Tali-banned women from its cabinet.
“Strategic Pause.” That’s what Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin, the West Virginia moderate, called for regarding President Biden’s main economic agenda and rebuilding plan because of soaring national debt.
“If I weren’t so preoccupied with the reconciliation package and having to deal with members of Congress, etc., etc., I would probably take the Budget Committee on the road all over the country.”—That was Sen. Bernie Sanders, chairman of the Senate Budget Committee, who has been finding some time to visit GOP-leaning districts in the Midwest to promote the Democrats’ emerging $3.5 trillion budget bill. No, he’s not accompanied by either Joe Manchin or Kyrsten Sinema.
“(President Biden) must urge progressives to support the infrastructure bill and to accept what they can get through reconciliation, which will be much less than they want. The alternative would be the collapse of the president’s domestic agenda and certain disaster in the midterms.”—William A. Galston,Wall Street Journal.