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Oh, we are, I'm afraid going to be entertained whilst the house Dems stop the infrastructure thing which will give them the win in the elections next year. The Republicans will go after the Dems by pointing out that they stopped the deal which would have fixed their streets, bridges, etc. and they will be telling the absolute truth. I really don't want this to happen but they are gearing up, bigtime, to prove their point which, apparently, is that they will sacrifuce any and everything to prove their determination to get EVERYTHING they want or nobody gets anything.

Pelosi will try to rein them in but, I fear, its a lost cause. I can actually get even worse in that before the house Dems are through they will also get rid of the filibuster so when the Republicans take both the house and the senate they will be able, basically, to do any damned thing they want and the only thing stopping them will be Biden.

I REALLY hope none of that is going to happen!

I'm not sure what will happen in the house. There's been stories the House progressives should ransom the infrastructure until they get what they want, another on how many changes the house will make to it, thus making passage once more in the senate impossible. But who to believe? I think I'll just wait and see.

One more article was the House Democrats should pass the bill as is to ensure they, all of us get what's there. Then the House can take up their additional stuff the progressives wanted later. sort of a two tier approach. But that wouldn't work and it would fail in the senate.

I've come to the conclusion that if we're going to get an infrastructure bill, it will be the one the senate just passed. It's a battle of hard infrastructure vs. soft infrastructure.

It is said politics is the art of the possible. I'd be a pragmatist on this, take what I can today, come back tomorrow for the more or the rest. At least get something. Get what is possible. Put the impossible on the back burner for another day. That's better than nothing. At least in my book.

Nancy is an extremely experienced Speaker of the House. She knows her Caucus extremely well. Fear not, all is good.

Agreed.

The progressives will get what they want in the other infrastructure bill. Bernie and AOC are on it.

Eggs-actly.

I dunno where JGW gets the notion that progressives are uncompromising. We have compromised on every single issue!

We expect to compromise on every issue in the future.

It is moderates who are unwilling to compromise. Moderates either want to do nothing at all or want to do too little to solve the problem at hand.

It was not wild-eyed leftist extremists who got us where we are today...

It was steady moderate governance. Never swinging more than a degree or two to the left or right.

I'm good with the Senate bill. I'm also good with the Squad threatening to vote against it on principle. Oddly enough...this is how compromise works. Each faction seeks to advance its position without giving up too much in the bargain.

This may be one of those occasions where the House must pass the exact bill the senate sends them without a single change. I fear if changes are made and the revised bill including the house changes wouldn't stand a chance of passing in the senate.

I could be wrong, but it seems we'll get all hard infrastructure with no soft or none at all. When talking infrastructure, most Americans only think of bridges, roads,etc.

Most likely it will pass.

Ya'll seem to think progressives are complete fools with no concept of political strategy.

Maybe it's not the progressives or maybe it is. Maybe it's Speaker Pelosi or maybe it's the progressives telling her to give them what they want or all fails. Time will tell.

Nancy Pelosi holding bipartisan US$1.2 trillion infrastructure bill 'to hostage’

https://www.news.com.au/world/nancy...e/video/86465b0efe6377ba35bd24187b86aa36

Lot's of maybe's, still don't know who to beleive.

No. But like every other group, there are enough fools that don't, and this is one of those times where it shows.
I'm grateful for the progressives who do have strategic skills.
I'm also grateful for the mainstream and moderates who possess such skills.

The problem we're having is that the one or two from each side who don't are clubbing each other like baby seals.

One's political strategy depends on what one exactly wants. How important it is that you get what you want. It also depends on how far one is willing to go. To the brink, then pull back and pass what is available or go past the brink which could doom the entire package or legislation in the quest to get what you want.

I go by the old political adage of "Politics is the art of the possible." I stated that many times. A strategy to gain more than what is possible will lead to failure or instead of getting 50%, 80% of what you want that is possible, you end up with nothing.

Either way, it's still a political strategy. One is a winning strategy, getting what is possible or available to come back at a latter date to try to the rest, the other is a gamble of all in, win big, gain everything or lose big and end up with nothing.

I'm sure on this infrastructure bill, Schumer has let Speaker Pelosi know that any changes would certainly lose the 19 Republicans who voted for it in the senate along with possibly Manchin and Sinema.. It seems the House Republicans are dead set against this bill, at least from what I've read so far. The Democrats have 222 members, 218 needed to pass it.

I don't know how this will turn out. If moderates or progressive democrats try to change the original bill from the senate or vote against it, I do know failure to pass this would be handing the GOP a good campaign issue for next year's midterms. I would add, if the Democrats are to retain the House next year, they need Biden to remain a popular president. Both President Biden and House democrats need this to pass in order for Biden to remain popular, over 50% approval in my estimation.

Biden today is right at 50.0%. The lowest he has been since inauguration day.

https://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/other/president-biden-job-approval-7320.html

Worst yet, independents give Biden a 47% approval. Again for the first time since inauguration day Biden has been below 50% among independents. One last thing, independents give Democrats in congress only a 25% favorable, 63% unfavorable. Republicans in congress get a 26% favorable, 62% unfavorable. Independents give congress a 10% approval rating vs. 66% disapproval. Now this congressional approval includes all of congress, not just Democrats or just Republicans. But one needs to remember it's the Democrats who are in control of congress. It's the Democrats in congress that's in the public's eye, much more than the Republicans since the Democrats are in control. Take that anyway you wish.