Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) on Wednesday signaled that she is not giving up on the reconciliation package’s $3.5 trillion topline, despite some Democratic leaders’ suggestions that a smaller price tag of $2 trillion would get centrist Sens. Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) to come around to supporting the sweeping legislation.
Hey Liz how about 3 T, it’s a nice round number.
Manchin is turning out to be a fraud. He can’t articulate his true carbon nature, which is kind of sad for someone from such a beautiful place.
Warren was a professor of law.
The first week in my first contracts class in law school the professor told us to never bid against ourselves. He was right. So is Liz. The Democrats have a proposal on the table. SineMan has an obligation to tell the Democrats exactly what they want cut. Asking the Democrats to lower the top line is asking them to bid against themselves.
I still don’t understand why they keep talking about cutting stuff. Just do everything over 5 years instead of 10
‘Other Side’ Should Make Demands Clear
Damn straight!
The number is what matters to the headline writers, so it is all that matters to the headline grabbers. Eff those attention seekers and good for Senator Warren for calling out their strategy.
Manchin will want to cut anything that touches his West Virginia coal interests. He also wants to add stuff the others don’t, like insisting on including Hyde Amendment language (Federal abortion funding ban). As for Sinema, who the hell knows what she wants other than attention.
Warren replied that she will not “negotiate against myself” while demanding that those on “the other side” — referring to Manchin and Sinema, both of whom continue to put up a fight over the reconciliation package’s price tag — make their demands clear.
BINGO! My wife teaches negotiations and her mantra is always “don’t negotiate against yourself! Wait until the other side makes a clear counteroffer”
There are two goals:
(1) Get the best Deal possible
(2) Not to wind up with nothing
This.
And doubly true when, as here, the reason the other side doesn’t want to counter is because they know their counter will make them look bad.
As an aside, your first week in contracts was spent much more productively than mine. My first week was all about peppercorns…
I’ve had the pleasure of watching Elizabeth Warren grill a whole lot of folks on YouTube, including John Stumpf from Wells Fargo, Betsy DeVos, Jerome Powell as Fed Chair, and Jamie Dimon of JP Morgan. She very deftly questioned them, not letting them wiggle out of providing direct answers. It was like watching a person who has just caught a big batch of fish expertly using a filet knife. She’s relentless!
Warren replied that she will not “negotiate against myself” while demanding that those on “the other side” — referring to Manchin and Sinema, both of whom continue to put up a fight over the reconciliation package’s price tag — make their demands clear.
That’s just too sensible: giving away the farm trying to second guess yourself is a fool’s errand.
There she goes again, persisting.
I love that about her 
Nancy is dealing with other possible compromises. It is possible that both Liz and Bernie are both given their head (by Nancy and/or the WH) to decide how much they wish to insist on 3.5T in open interviews.
Whatever the case is, we have to lock down a Deal.
After what seems like a century under that former guy (the LOSER), I never want to hear that “d” word again. Democrats need to agree on a bill.
Too bad the Repubs have checked out. How is it they’re still getting paid?
I’m not sure that’s it. I think they don’t want to counter because they want to keep it a moving target. If they never counter, then their offer can’t ever be accepted. I really think they want nothing to pass.
Yep. The reason they don’t want to say what they’ll cut is because absolutely none of it will play well back home. Oh, you wanna cut childcare? Pretty sure poor and middle-class families in WV and AZ would have something to say about that. You wanna cut the Medicare portion? Tell poor and middle-class seniors in WV and AZ that they don’t need no stinkin’ glasses, dental care, or hearing aids.
Why aren’t we talking about 350B topline?!!! That’s what is being proposed on an annual basis. Compare this with 721B annual defense spending. We’re ALREADY negotiating against ourselves in the court of public opinion.