Share this page!

Adam Jentleson 🎈 Profile picture
Twitter logo
24 Dec, 4 tweets, 3 min read
McConnell wants folks to think the $2k bill is doomed in the Senate but he’s really trying to avoid a vote that puts Perdue/Loeffler in a bind and might split his conference. Trump’s the X factor but if he backs it, there’ll be huge pressure on McConnell to bring it to the floor.
Actually, there is! If @realDonaldTrump is feeling as vengeful toward McConnell as reports suggest, he should read @jiwallner (no raging lefty) on how the Senate Majority Leader’s power to set the agenda is statutorily weak, based more on habit than rules.
Trump is probably just being a chaos machine. But if he actually wants the checks he can have Pence preside (VP is the president of the Senate) and give floor recognition to someone who’ll bring up the House $2k bill. If Trump won’t use this power, it confirms he’s just bluffing.
Answer: it’s complicated. If recognized, other members can bring up bills- Schumer did this during ACB fight. Ultimately It boils down to whether you have the votes. So it’s most useful in a situation like the current one, where the bill being blocked might pass if it got a vote.

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
　

Keep Current with Adam Jentleson 🎈

Adam Jentleson 🎈 Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @AJentleson

Adam Jentleson 🎈 Profile picture
23 Dec
A quick procedural word about unanimous consent (UC) agreements since we might hear a lot about them in the next few days: a single objection from any member blocks them (hence “unanimous”). On the hill, there’s a term for bringing up UCs you know are likely to fail: UC practice.
The beauty of UCs is that they can be very fast: even in the Senate, if a member asks to pass a Bill by UC and no one objects, it passes, just like that. Doesn’t matter how big or small or on what topic, the bill is passed. The downside of course is that one objection blocks it.
Before a bill is brought up by UC, leadership runs a “hotline” which is a caucus-wide canvass (usually over email) to see if anyone has an objection. By the time a bill is brought to the floor by UC, leadership knows whether it’ll pass or fail based on feedback from the hotline.
Read 7 tweets
Adam Jentleson 🎈 Profile picture
21 Dec
Democrats should not take a victory lap on this bill. It provides less than a third of the aid economists say is necessary and McConnell is getting all the credit- after blocking aid for months. Instead we should explain why this bill is inadequate and how Dems will deliver more.
Dems got out-maneuvered. Failing to secure state/local aid means the bill comes in ~$300B below what was achievable, with harsh consequences. Politically, McConnell is getting all the credit. Embracing the bill undercuts Warnock and Ossoff by validating McConnell’s victory lap.
Vote yes, say it’s crap. This bill may be better than nothing, but it’s a slap in the face to working Americans who are getting hosed while corporations rake in record profits. Hang its inadequacy around Trump and McConnell and hammer home that Dems want to deliver more.
Read 9 tweets
Adam Jentleson 🎈 Profile picture
18 Dec
So... agree or disagree, I say what I think on here. 🤷‍♂️ I took flack from the left for defending CARES. The current deal might end up as better than nothing and worth passing. But Dems left billions in aid on the table that would’ve helped many facing dire straits. For example.. Image
Let’s take the 12/2 decision by Dem leaders to endorse the 900B bipartisan frame. These kinds of negotiations are all about that baseline- you fight like hell to give an inch. Pelosi/Mnuchin had a $1.8B baseline. Securing no concessions, Dem leaders *halved* the baseline to 900B. Image
Some argue that Dem leaders refusing to cut a deal before the election helped Biden. Sure. Others note McConnell rejected the 1.8T deal. Yes! But: why cut the baseline in *half*, giving away ~$1T in aid, for no concessions? There’s miles of landing room between 1.8T and 900B.
Read 10 tweets
Adam Jentleson 🎈 Profile picture
18 Dec
With Mnuchin endorsing a $1.8T proposal in Oct that included $1,200 checks, $400 UI & $300B in state/local, and with Trump still actively trying to increase direct checks, there is simply no way to argue that Dem leaders secured the best deal possible. McConnell ate their lunch.
Of course McConnell won’t bring the bill straight up, that’s not how it works. The leverage is the WH endorsing (enthusiastically!) policies Dems favor. Under Obama, McConnell used Obama’s endorsement of spending cuts to much greater effect than Dems with roles/policies reversed.
There’s a weird “McConnell is evil BUT we must also believe whatever he says” learned helplessness. Leaders declare specific bills DOA, then the negotiators run at each other with the pieces. Dems might not have been able to get $1.8 but they definitely could have gotten > 900B.
Read 9 tweets
Adam Jentleson 🎈 Profile picture
16 Dec
Very much team @jomalleydillon
This will one day be cited by Republicans as a reason they refused to cooperate with Biden - which will be a bullshit manufactured excuse to cover for the fact that they never intended to in the first place, and only prove that Jen was right.
And there it is. This is bullshit and should be covered as such. It’s an insult to our intelligence to believe that Republicans were gearing up to work with Biden but their delicate sensibilities were offended so they balked. After the last four years let’s not play this game.
Read 4 tweets
Adam Jentleson 🎈 Profile picture
16 Dec
McConnell is upbeat because he is getting what he wants: the least amount of aid injected into the economy while still passing a bill before the GA runoffs. Dems are upbeat because they love doing "deals," even when that deal is giving McConnell everything he wants.
The package Dems are gearing up to accept closely resembles the skinny framework McConnell released months ago. Dems came down by several trillion dollars while McConnell inched up. Unclear what the bipartisan negotiations achieved since this is basically just McConnell’a bill.
What more could Dems do? Dems did basically none of the things you'd normally want to do to pressure the other side. Instead of anything resembling a pressure campaign on popular policies like the checks,they spent months signaling their willingness to climb down off key demands.
Read 8 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!

This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Too expensive? Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal Become our Patreon

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us on Twitter!

Like this author's thread?

Get emails when @AJentleson has new unrolls!

Check out other threads from @AJentleson!

Read all threads by @AJentleson