Manchin’s PAC Raked In Corporate Donations Just Before He Axed Build Back Better

This past fall, as Sen. Joe Manchin (D-West Virginia) worked to gut Democrats’ marquee Build Back Better Act – which he would later kill – his political action committee received an influx of donations from huge corporations, some of which would have been directly impacted by proposals in the bill.

New Federal Election Commission (FEC) filings reviewed by CNBC show that in October and November, Manchin’s PAC received a total of 36 contributions from corporations, a spike from previous months.

The leadership PAC Country Roads was able to raise over $150,000 from donors like Verizon, Wells Fargo and others in October. It also received cash from PACs associated with the mining and coal industries, to which Manchin was. Closely linked.

The PAC received donations ranging between $2,500 and $5,000 from influential financial giants American Express (Goldman Sachs) a month later. It also received contributions by CNX Resources, a natural-gas company, as well as health insurance companies UnitedHealth Group (Blue Cross Blue Shield)

Meanwhile, Manchin’s PAC got a contribution from Lockheed Martin as the Senate was considering a massive defense budget$778 billion Manchin voted to passHe was open to the idea, despite his apparent concerns about government spending.

October and November were crucial months in negotiations for the Build Back better Act. Manchin won in October The White House must be slashed the bill’s price tag of $3.5 trillion over ten years, even though the bill would have been fully paid for. That same month, he got the centerpiece of the bill’s climate proposals, which would have been the Climate change is the main driver of emissions reductions, was slashed from legislation. He issued shortly thereafter an ultimatum to progressive lawmakers, forcing them to cut at least one of the bill’s provisions aimed at helping families.

November was a similarly exciting month for the legislation. Some conservative House members insisted that the bill include a lifting of the state and local taxes (SALT) cap. This allows people to deduct state taxes from their federal taxes.

Conservative Democrats argued for lowering the cap entirely, which would have allowed tax breaks Nearly exclusivelyThe proposal is for the wealthy; even in its most watered-down form it is Still a handout for millionairesLooking to avoid taxes The House November saw the bill passed.Sending the soon-to be-doomed legislation the Senate

Manchin had earlier this week announced that there was There is no way for him to support Build Back Better Act going forward – and suggested that there There was never one to begin with – effectively killing the bill, which needs all 50 Democratic senators’ votes to pass. This is a major blow to Democrats as well as families who depend on financial assistance such the child tax credit, or are looking forward to future provisions. Like paid sick leave.

This is also a devastating blow to the global community, as the reconciliation bill is Joe Biden’s last chance to take meaningful action on the climate crisisThe Republicans will likely take at least one chamber of Congress’ majority in 2022, just as they did in 2016. The U.S. plays an outsized roleResearch has shown that climate change perpetuation contributes to millions of deaths around the world each year.

It’s unclear why Manchin would make this drastic move, especially after he had such an enormous hand in shaping the legislation. Certainly, his party only stands to lose by failing to deliver on the centerpiece of Joe Biden’s agenda, named after his administration’s premier slogan. Some commentators SpeculatedManchin could be planning to run for president; others have notedHe is enjoying the attention, power, and donations he receives, while he subverts his party, including contributions from Koch network funding right-wing sources.

While campaigns and PACs aren’t required to disclose specific reasons for donations in their FEC filings, many of the corporations that donated to Manchin’s PAC – if not all of them – have a vested interest in killing the Build Back Better Act. Any legislation that would have incentivized the use of renewable energies would have hurt coal and fossil fuel companies’ bottom linesWhile a corporate minimum taxCompanies that frequently avoid paying federal income taxes would have been required to pay a minimum of 15%