Manchin calls for "strategic pause" on $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill

Democratic Senator Joe Manchin is calling for a "strategic pause" on the $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation bill, citing concerns about the price tag and inflation, as the White House and other Democrats push for its passage. 

Manchin's hesitation matters because the bill needs all 50 Senate Democrats to vote in favor for it to pass. Manchin voiced his desire for a pause on the bill at a West Virginia Chamber of Commerce meeting on Wednesday, then again in a Wall Street Journal op-ed Thursday.  "Instead of rushing to spend trillions on new government programs and additional stimulus funding, Congress should hit a strategic pause on the budget-reconciliation legislation," Manchin wrote. "A pause is warranted because it will provide more clarity on the trajectory of the pandemic, and it will allow us to determine whether inflation is transitory or not. While some have suggested this reconciliation legislation must be passed now, I believe that making budgetary decisions under artificial political deadlines never leads to good policy or sound decisions."