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With a few strokes of a pen on Tuesday, President Joe Biden turned Democrats‘ hard-fought climate and health care spending legislation from a bill into a law.
“It’s about showing the American people that democracy still works, notwithstanding all the talk of its demise,” Biden said. „This is a godsend.“
He called the package „one of the most significant laws in our history,“ stressing more than once that every Republican in Congress opposed the bill.
Democrats now face the difficult task of explaining to Americans how they will benefit from the legislation – and when – before this fall’s midterm elections, with voting beginning as early as next month in some states.
Biden initially sought a broader bill that included money for child care, preschool and paid family leave, but Democrats could not muster enough support from within their party for the expansive bill he first proposed.
After more than a year of negotiations, Democrats used their bare majority to pass a law that incentivizes clean energy investments, lowers prescription drug costs for seniors and extends health insurance subsidies for millions of others. The package that raises a projected $739 billion in revenue will also reduce the deficit, increase IRS enforcement and set a minimum tax rate for large corporations.
Sen. Joe Manchin, the West Virginia Democrat who blocked the larger package and then negotiated the final version with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y,, received a round of applause when he entered the State Dining Room for Tuesday’s bill signing.
“Joe, I never had a doubt,” Biden said before signing the bill and handing Manchin the pen.
Schumer said the bill „will endure as one of the greatest legislative feats in decades.”
“We persisted and persisted and persisted and never gave up,“ he said of its tortuous path.
The White House says it will launch a series of videos breaking down the legislation’s benefits to average Americans and encourage internet influencers to share content about the law on their social media channels.
