President biden
Joe BidenNoem praises the response to the South Dakota coronavirus, breaks down blockages in the CPAC On The Trail speech: Cuomo and Newsom – a story of two governors in trouble Biden celebrates approval of the vaccine, but warns that ‘current improvement may reverse’ MOST it brought back bipartisan meetings in the White House that have subsided under its predecessor, trying to find common ground with Republicans, even as they remain aloof on issues related to the next round of coronavirus relief.
Biden’s first meeting with lawmakers in the Oval Office was with Republican senators on the coronavirus proposal, and he has since met with bipartisan members of Congress on infrastructure and, later, supply chain issues. Biden’s reach to Republicans has also extended beyond the Capitol, to governors and local leaders, while his administration is battling the coronavirus and the recent winter storms in the southern states.
The meetings are another example of a return to more traditional governance under Biden and are expected to make them a regular occurrence.
White House spokesman Michael Gwin said the president is “happy to welcome legislators from both parties in the White House to work towards finding common ground on the challenges we face, and he will continue to do so throughout your mandate ”.
“Biden’s brand is bringing people together, so it is always useful for him to remind voters that he is trying to come together,” said Democratic strategist Joel Payne. “For now, it helps you stay above the fray.”
While Biden is making an effort to reach the other side of the corridor, the real test will be whether that engagement will produce any results. Discussions with Republicans over the relief of COVID-19 have not brought the two sides any closer to an agreement. Democrats moved to approve Biden’s $ 1.9 trillion proposal using budget reconciliation, creating tensions with Republicans.
“There are clearly issues where there is bipartisan consensus, but it requires presidential leadership and political capital to prevent the extreme left or extreme right from preventing it,” said Alex Conant, Republican strategist and former White House spokesman for George W Bush.
Biden’s effort to work along the corridor reflects his campaign promise to be a unifier and a “president for all Americans”.
“He said he wants Republicans at the table from the start,” said a former Biden adviser. “You can’t campaign on this for a year and a half and then not do that.”
The adviser said Biden’s goal was always to lessen the rhetoric and “break the fever”.
“Making them the opposition and not the enemy, that is part of the agreement,” said the consultant. “Part of the goal is to normalize the conversation with them. This is also a message he is sending not only to Republicans, but also to Democrats.
“He does not have the illusion that we will get 67 votes, but that is how policymaking works,” continued the adviser, adding that Biden is a “creature of the Senate”.
Biden foresaw plans to approve a recovery and infrastructure package, and Democrats also submitted an immigration proposal on Capitol Hill, presenting their next tests to work with Republicans. Biden would need Republicans to join Democrats to pass an immigration review.
In addition to Biden’s contacts, the White House says officials remain in constant contact with Republican offices on Capitol Hill and in the states.
Former President Obama also tried to contact Republicans in the first few months of his presidency; he met with the bipartisan leadership of the House and Senate on his first day in Washington in January 2009, before taking office, to discuss the economic recovery.
“President Obama wanted to do everything he could to reach Republicans in Congress,” said Phil Schiliro, who served as Obama’s director of legislative affairs. “If there was no receptivity, he didn’t want the lack of interest to stop us from moving forward. ”
Obama’s disclosure initially included several small bipartisan social events, including a meeting for the Super Bowl and some cocktails at the White House. But they broke up shortly after starting because Obama considered them unsuccessful in helping his legislative agenda.
“He hated them,” said a former senior administration official.
He continued to have occasional meetings with bipartisan groups “only when issues required [and] not for the sake of bipartisan courtesy, ”said another former official, pointing to meetings on government funding and the nuclear deal with Iran.
Biden drew contrasts with the previous one President Trump
Donald TrumpNoem praises the response to the South Dakota coronavirus, breaks down blockades in CPAC On The Trail speech: Cuomo and Newsom – a story of two troubled governors McCarthy: ‘I would bet my house’ GOP resumes lower house in 2022 MORE, who campaigned based on an outsider and not based on the ability or willingness to work in the corridor. Although there were some moments of bipartisanship during the Trump era, such as the passage of the First Step Act, they were fleeting and drowned out by the constant friction between the then president and the Democrats.
“From the moment Trump won, Democrats pledged to defeat him four years later. The Democratic base had no interest in working with Trump, ”said Conant. “Trump never introduced himself as a president of all Americans. If you didn’t support Trump, he saw you as the opposition from day one. “
Trump held some meetings with bipartisan leaders at the White House, but they fell in late 2019 when House Democrats started the impeachment process. Trump’s final meeting with the bipartisan parliamentary leadership took place in October 2019 in relation to Syria. The meeting ended with a storm of Democrats and both sides launching insults, and Trump never spoke to the mayor. Nancy Pelosi
Nancy PelosiMcCarthy: ‘I would bet my house’ GOP resumes the lower house in 2022 After voting against the coronavirus relief package, Golden calls for more bipartisanship in Congress Democrats do not trust the GOP on the 1/6 commission: ‘These people are dangerous’ MOST (D-Calif.) After that meeting.
Still, all five emergency coronavirus funding projects approved by the Democratic-controlled House and the Republican-controlled Senate last year were bipartisan, although Trump played a small role in the negotiations and even momentarily threatened the fate of the final legislation. approved in December. Instead, he was the then Treasury secretary Steven Mnuchin
Steven MnuchinOn The Money: Schumer urges Democrats to remain united in the .9T bill | Collins rules out Republican Party support for Biden’s relief plan | Powell fights inflation fears that Mnuchin hopes to launch investment fund seeking support from the Persian Gulf region: report Larry Kudlow debuts with high ratings on Fox Business Network MORE who led discussions with Pelosi on coronavirus relief.
Conant described the lack of bipartisan support for Biden’s coronavirus relief package as a “sinister start” and said the White House would probably want and need Republican support to approve a major immigration and infrastructure policy.
“I think Biden is well positioned to do that if he is willing to break with the extreme left at times,” said Conant. “You cannot expect bipartisanship if you are not willing to give something to the other side.”
Democrats currently hold only a narrow majority in Congress, with Vice President Harris voting for a Senate 50-50 tiebreaker when necessary. The fight for the nomination of Biden by Neera Tanden for the Management and Budget Office, which Sen. Joe Manchin
Joseph (Joe) ManchinProgressives rages at Senate setbacks Politics, not racism or sexism, explains opposition to House Democrats from Biden Cabinet nominees approve .9T COVID-19 relief bill with minimum wage increase MOST (DW.Va.) is opposed, it also highlights the work the president needs to do to keep his own party together while trying to work in the corridor.
Biden’s first meeting with Republican senators on February 1 was cordial, according to the participants, but Biden remained committed to his $ 1.9 trillion relief proposal, which Republicans consider very expensive.
Biden’s reach continued as he met with a bipartisan group of senators on February 11 on infrastructure and, this week, with 11 lawmakers, including six Republicans, on how to deal with supply chain vulnerabilities. Sen. John Cornyn
John CornynPolitics, not racism or sexism, explains opposition to those nominated to the Biden Office. Biden promises to support Texas amid the recovery from the winter storm. Party headwinds threaten Capitol riot commission MORE (R-Texas.), Who met with Biden on a storm-hit Texas trip on Friday, described the meeting as “very positive”.
“The political process has its ups and downs and I hope this is an opportunity for us to do something really important in a bipartisan way,” said Cornyn. “So far, the $ 1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill is being passed strictly along party lines. I find that regrettable. ”