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House Democrats approved a $739 billion climate change, tax hike and health care bill on Friday, giving a boost to President Biden’s domestic agenda at a time of record inflation and low numbers of approval of presidential jobs.
In a 220-207 vote, the House voted along party lines to pass the legislation. All Democrats supported the bill over opposition from all but three Republicans who did not vote.
“Today is truly a glorious day for us,” said House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. “We’re sending to the president’s desk a monumental bill that will truly be for the people.”
Republicans vehemently opposed the bill, arguing that its provisions would worsen the US economy and impose new burdens on American workers.
“Remember this day,” said House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif. “When Democrats Jammed a 700-Page Bill That Raises Your Taxes and Doubles the Size of the IRS.”
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President Biden smiles during remarks before signing the Jobs and Infrastructure Investment Act on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington November 15, 2021. (REUTERS/Jonathan Ernst)
The law, which has already been approved by the Senate, now goes to the president, who is expected to sign it shortly. His move represents a victory for Biden, whose young tenure in the White House has been rocked by 40-year high inflation, a recession and plunging poll numbers.
“This bill reflects a lot of what we wanted to see, not everything we wanted to see, let me be clear, but it’s a very important step forward,” said House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md. “It will reduce the deficit, reduce costs and expand access to affordable health care, all while making the largest investment in history to address the global climate crisis.”
Democrats began working on the bill shortly after Biden took office. Initially called Build Back Better, the legislation was proposed as an ambitious overhaul of the nation’s economy and climate infrastructure.
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With a price tag of more than $3.5 trillion, this iteration of the legislation fell apart in the face of a 50-50 Democratic split in the Senate.
Senator Joe Manchin, in particular, refused to support the bill last year over concerns that it could exacerbate inflation. The West Virginia Democrat’s opposition was enough to derail the bill, as widespread GOP opposition meant the only way the bill could pass the Senate was through a familiar party-line process as a budget reconciliation.
Despite Manchin’s opposition, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., worked to revive the package. Out of those private negotiations between Schumer and Manchin came the Inflation Reduction Act.
Sen. Joe Manchin, D-West Virginia, walked out (F. Carter Smith/Bloomberg via Getty Images); Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, DN.Y. (Kent Nishimura/Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) ( )
The bill allows Medicare to negotiate the price of some life-saving prescription drugs starting in 2023. Democrats say the measure will save the government $288 billion over the next decade.
“Democrats have been fighting for years to lower drug prices, and this bill allows Medicare to negotiate with drug companies,” said Rep. James McGovern, D-Mass. “Cap the out-of-pocket cost of insulin at $35 for people with Medicare … if you’re on Medicare, you won’t have to pay more than $2,000 a year for your prescriptions.”
The Manchin-Schumer bill also imposes a 15% minimum tax on corporations, a measure expected to raise $313 billion. Democrats also say that by investing in the Internal Revenue Service they can save an additional $124 billion.
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In total, the bill proposes to raise $739 billion. Of that sum, $369 billion is expected to go toward climate change grants to try to help reach Biden’s goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 40 percent by 2030. $64 billion more dollars will go toward expanding ObamaCare subsidies.
The rest of the new revenue, more than $300 billion, will go toward paying down the deficit.
Haris Alic covers Congress and politics for Fox News Digital. You can contact him at haris.alic@fox.com or follow him on Twitter at @realharisalic.