
The implosion that didn't happen -- and the very real issues Biden still confronts on his agenda
CNN
For about 30 minutes on Monday, it appeared as if West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin had rolled a hand grenade down the hallway in which President Joe Biden's $3 trillion, two-bill domestic agenda was patiently waiting to move through the House as soon as this week.
Then House progressives -- the same House progressives who rejected two prior deadlines and had been in a rhetorical and policy war with Manchin and fellow centrist holdout Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema for months -- picked it up and calmly placed the pin back in.
There are still significant issues on the policy side that need to be resolved for Democrats to actually move forward in House this week on Biden's $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill and $1.75 trillion economic and climate package. But House progressives moving off the demand of explicit assurances from all 50 Democratic senators that they will vote for the package is significant -- and keeps the process on track. For now.