After spending the previous segment celebrating Senate Democrats’ successful confirmation of Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court, the NBC Meet the Press panel eventually turned to despair when they realized this might be the last legislative success of the Biden administration before the midterms (and if Republicans take control of Congress the last period).
Meet the Press anchor Chuck Todd turned the panel in this direction by asking if this is “the last big vote that President Biden gets for the midterms?”
Punchbowl News co-founder Anna Palmer did her best to regurgitate the Biden administration’s talking points by pointing out how they have been successful in getting their agenda through Congress claiming “I think you have to give him some credit” and then proceeded to list some of the legislation Biden has shepherded through Congress “American Rescue Plan, infrastructure, omnibus.” To which Todd rightly pointed out “the American Rescue Plan that Larry Summers just said contributed to inflation.”
Palmer retorted that “those are huge bipartisan legislative bills in any administration. I do think you’re gonna see something on the semiconductors package, I do think you’re gonna have to fund the government” but other than that “a lot of these large ticket items” Palmer said she has a hard time seeing getting passed.
Becoming more despondent, Todd turned to correspondent Josh Lederman and sulked “Student loan debt, Prescription drugs, Josh, I mean, these are big ticket promises that the Democrats have made for a long time.”
Lederman admitted the White House knows “this might be the last major achievement” they enjoy. Former Republican Florida Congressman Carlos Curbelo thought there might be “a window for climate” change legislation because there is a “growing bipartisan consensus on climate.”
Senior opinion writer for The Boston Globe Kimberly Atkins Stohr ended things on a low note for the mostly liberal panel by bemoaning how “Democrats have shown time and time again” that they are very good at talking about the “problems that need some kind of policy or legislative solutions” while “Republicans find issues that they can campaign on and win elections on.”
Stohr noted that the current crisis at the border is a perfect example of Democratic messaging failures noting “Democrats haven't acted, for example, to get out ahead of Title 42 and pass something in order to deal with this exigent issue, knowing that you had this basically expiration date on this policy and it would have to end sometime. They’re just starting that space now.”
She ended by wailing “Republicans are already campaigning against it. Democrats are always two steps behind!”
This Meet the Press segment was made possible by Allstate. Their information is linked.
To read the transcript of this segment click expand:
NBC’s Meet the Press
4/10/2022
11:12:14 a.m. EasternCHUCK TODD: Is this the last big vote that President Biden gets for the midterms, Anna?
ANNA PALMER: Well, I think you have to give him some credit. American Rescue Plan, infrastructure, omnibus. Huge!
TODD: The American Rescue Plan that Larry Summers just said contributed to inflation.
PALMER: But those are huge bipartisan legislative bills in any administration. I do think you’re gonna see something on the semiconductors package, I do think you’re gonna have to fund the government, but a lot of these large ticket items, climate, child tax credit I have a hard time seeing.
TODD: Student loan debt, Prescription drugs, Josh, I mean, these are big ticket promises that the Democrats have made for a long time.
JOSH LEDERMAN: Yeah, you talk to White House officials and they don't dispute the fact that this might be the last major achievement. They are excited about this bipartisan Innovation Act, they think they can use that in the midterms to play up..
TODD: That's been sitting there for how many months?
LEDERMAN: Sure but it's moving towards a conference and they wanna be anti-China and look what we're doing for American manufacturing and whatnot, but nobody in the White House is claiming that they are definitely gonna get any of those individual pieces, climate or the prescription drug stuff. They’d like to but that's not the reality between now and November.
CARLOS CURBELO: I think there is a window for climate which would be a big deal for the Democrats and their base. And there is actually a growing bipartisan consensus on climate.
TODD: Spoken like a Floridian.
CURBELO: So I do think there is a chance there.
TODD: I hope you're right. I haven't seen it. I haven’t seen the evidence there.
KIMBERLY ATKINS STOHR: I mean Democrats have shown time and time again. They talk about the problems that need some kind of policy or legislative solutions. Republicans find issues that they can campaign on and win elections on. And that's exactly what's happening right now, that Democrats haven't acted, for example, to get out ahead of Title 42 and pass something in order to deal with this exigent issue, knowing that you had this basically expiration date on this policy and it would have to end sometime. They’re just starting that space now. Republicans are already campaigning against it. Democrats are always two steps behind.
