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27 Apr, 6 tweets, 3 min read
NEW: How Barack Obama’s eight years shaped Joe Biden’s first 100 days

My deep dive into a series of lessons Biden absorbed from the ex-president, from making policy to hiring staff to negotiating with Republicans.

“It’s called learning from the past.”

nbcnews.com/politics/joe-b…
Go big on crisis relief. Ignore the deficit hawks. Don’t hold out for bipartisan votes that aren’t coming. Brag about your achievements... and other Obama-era lessons Biden has applied, per more than two dozens Dems who worked in one or both WHs/Congress.

nbcnews.com/politics/joe-b…
.@brianefallon on '09 lessons: "Don't trim the price tag of your proposals based on bad advice from Larry Summers types. Don't get bogged down about pay-fors based on bad-faith concerns from phony deficit hawks. Don't forget about judges... as Rahm did." nbcnews.com/politics/joe-b…
This is a story about Joe Biden changing course, and also about a Democratic Party that is shedding its Reagan-era mindset and embracing a younger and diverse electorate that wants to America to be a center-left country. nbcnews.com/politics/joe-b…
"The biggest lesson learned is that Mitch McConnell doesn't act in good faith," says former Obama speechwriter @davidlitt. << The most common theme that came up when I asked Dem politicos how Biden is governing differently than his old boss circa '09. nbcnews.com/politics/joe-b…
Anita Dunn, Biden adviser + Obama vet, says Obama alums on transition "heavily influenced" its priorities. She says '09 and '21 are different.

@danpfeiffer adds: "The right comparison is where Obama was when he left in 2017 with where Biden is in 2021." nbcnews.com/politics/joe-b…

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More from @sahilkapur

Sahil Kapur Profile picture
21 Apr
Senate is holding a procedural vote on Vanita Gupta for associate AG this morning.

If she advances, a final vote is today.

Dems are now benefiting from McConnell using the nuclear option in 2019 to cut debate time from 30 hours to 2 hrs for sub-Cabinet noms and district judges.
51-49, Vanita Gupta advances to a final vote.
Lisa Murkowski was the lone Republican "yes" on the Vanita Gupta procedural vote, which avoided the need for the VP to break the tie.
Read 4 tweets
Sahil Kapur Profile picture
16 Apr
New: Republicans struggle to craft a counteroffer on infrastructure.

They agree on one thing: They don’t like Biden’s $2.25 trillion plan. But that’s about all.

Sen. Capito, the point person, floated a $600-$800b price tag, then backpedaled a day later.

nbcnews.com/politics/congr…
There’s no price tag or range that Republicans agree on for infrastructure.

“We haven't made consensus on it,” says Capito, EPW committee ranker.

Without that they can’t write a counteroffer; without a counter they can’t negotiate.

w/ @JulieNBCNews 👇

nbcnews.com/politics/congr…
"He has put his ideas out, and he's put a way to pay for it out. And he is anxious to look at other people's ideas," a White House adviser said. "The one thing that he will not agree to is inaction. These are investments the country has needed for years." nbcnews.com/politics/congr…
Read 4 tweets
Sahil Kapur Profile picture
12 Apr
New: Some immigration lawyers and progressives warn that Democrats’ voting-rights bill could unintentionally harm immigrants.

There’s a behind-the-scenes push to get the Senate to tweak HR1’s automatic voter registration language to minimize errors. nbcnews.com/politics/congr…
At issue is how automatic voter registration should be structured. Dems and progressives agree AVR is good—but HR1 drafters want a “front end” system that requires an opt out; others favor a “back end” system with a new filter like eligibility docs before triggering registration.
One HR1 fear: US law is strict. If a visa or green card holder checks the wrong box or misunderstands a DMV clerk's question, and gets registered to vote, they can be deported or barred from citizenship. A lawyer calls false affirmation a "kiss of death." nbcnews.com/politics/congr…
Read 6 tweets
Sahil Kapur Profile picture
11 Apr
NEW: This district has been a hot spot for political movements that have tracked the national mood for a decade. Now, @SpanbergerVA07 sees temperatures cooling.

A fleeting calm? Or a roadmap for Dems to buck the midterm curse?

My report from VA07 👇

nbcnews.com/politics/polit…
Virginia-07 has been a unique kind of bellwether: It was Eric Cantor’s home in era of GOP as the party of biz. Flipped to Dave Brat with populist right, foreshadowing Trump. Turned blue in ‘18 with Spanberger.

Will it tell the story of the 2022 midterms? nbcnews.com/politics/polit…
The last two presidents faced an immediate backlash to their presidencies at this point. Obama had the tea party. Trump had the #resistance. But—for now—there's no equivalent grassroots uprising to Biden's agenda. His party-line $1.9 trillion stimulus didn't seem to ignite one.
Read 5 tweets
Sahil Kapur Profile picture
24 Mar
New: @Sen_JoeManchin calls for an "enormous" infrastructure package funded in part by new taxes.

He wants to roll back some of the Trump tax cuts.

The WV Democrat tells me the GOP position against new taxes is not "reasonable."

Hello, reconciliation?

nbcnews.com/politics/congr…
Biden’s advisers are crafting a $3 trillion package on infrastructure and other provisions, financed with tax increases, a source familiar with the plan tells NBC (confirming NYT/ @jimtankersley). Details still in flux.

Manchin’s vote will—again—be key.

nbcnews.com/politics/congr…
A key thing to know about Manchin: West Virginia has infrastructure needs and he's not throwing away his shot.

nbcnews.com/politics/congr…
Read 4 tweets
Sahil Kapur Profile picture
23 Mar
NEW: In the wake of two mass shootings in two weeks, Senate renews efforts to overhaul U.S. gun laws

This will be a slog.

Even the most modest and popular ideas, like universal background checks, face a murky path.

The more ambitious proposals are DOA.

nbcnews.com/politics/congr…
Chuck Schumer promises gun control votes, including on House-passed bills. But the House universal background checks bill lacks the votes: Even Joe Manchin is against it, says it goes too far. What can pass? Some version of Manchin-Toomey. Maybe. If that. nbcnews.com/politics/congr…
There is clearly a path to 50 Senate votes on a substantial gun background checks bill. But 60? Not so clear.

Here's @ChrisMurphyCT on what it would mean for the filibuster debate if even that is blocked: nbcnews.com/politics/congr…
Read 4 tweets

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