(RepublicanWire.org) – On Sunday, Senate Democrats passed what they labeled as the Inflation Reduction Act. The bill imposes the Democrats’ climate change agenda through billions of dollars allocated to cut greenhouse gas emissions and increase renewable energy.
Former President Donald Trump lashed out at Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell.
“Mitch McConnell got played like a fiddle with the vote today by the Senate Democrats,” Trump wrote Sunday on his Truth Social platform.
“First he gave them the fake Infrastructure Bill, then Guns, never used the Debt Ceiling for negotiating purposes (gave it away for NOTHING!), and now this,” the former president said.
“Mitch doesn’t have a clue – he is sooo bad for the Republican Party!” he said.
Democrats initially claimed the bill would reduce the federal deficit by $300 billion over the next 10 years, but when they rammed it through the Senate on Sunday, no estimate had yet been prepared for the final package.
The vote on the bill was 50-50, with Vice President Kamala Harris breaking the tie.
An analysis from The New York Times of the tactics used to steer the bill around many political landmines — including a gun safety component and money to boost microchip research and production — said “Democrats also got some help from Republicans.”
“Democrats said a threat by Mr. McConnell to block the microchip bill should Democrats proceed with the climate and tax bill backfired by motivating Mr. Manchin to pursue a compromise,” referencing Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, who earlier this year blocked Senate passage of a more expansive bill.
“Any time you threaten a bill you support because you are not getting your way on something else, you are in a bad spot,” Democratic Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland said. “It just looks bad. It was so crassly political.”
McConnell at one point defended collaboration with the Democrats.
“Just because you have closely divided government doesn’t mean you do nothing,” the Kentucky Republican said on Fox News last week. “Just because there is a Democrat in the White House, I don’t think means Republicans should do nothing that is good for the country in the meantime.”
After the bill’s passage, McConnell issued a statement criticizing the bill.
“Democrats have proven over and over they simply do not care about middle-class families’ priorities. They have spent 18 months proving that. They just spent hundreds of billions of dollars to prove it again,” he said on Twitter.
“But the working Americans they have failed will be writing Democrats’ report cards in three months’ time,” he said.
