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Biden signs the Inflation Reduction Act that raises $740 billion - and may do NOTHING to reduce inflation: President whips off his mask to thank Manchin for backing the 'most aggressive' climate package in history

  President   Joe Biden  signed the   Inflation  Reduction Act at the White House on Tuesday, injecting $473billion of new spending on clima...

 President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act at the White House on Tuesday, injecting $473billion of new spending on climate and healthcare amid concerns it will do little to reduce inflation.

Biden thanked Joe Manchin, the moderate Democratic senator who killed his initial Build Back Better package and finally signed on to the new legislation after months of negotiations - including the guarantee of a gas pipeline in his home state of West Virginia. 

Republicans have criticized the bill, claiming it will lead to taxes on middle class Americans and will do little to help reduce soaring costs. 

'Joe, I never had a doubt,' he told the Democrat at a signing ceremony, where Biden hailed the measure as a tool to take on the special interests.

President Joe Biden signs the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 after joking that he 'never had a doubt' he could get all 50 Senate Democrats on board to pass it

President Joe Biden signs the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 after joking that he 'never had a doubt' he could get all 50 Senate Democrats on board to pass it

Biden, who wore a mask when he first entered the room after first lady Jill Biden tested positive for COVID, called it a 'historic moment' and bashed Republicans for voting in unison against it.

'For a while, people doubted whether any of it would happen,' he told Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, who helped forge the final deal with Manchin. 

Schumer himself called it the 'most important' thing Congress had done 'in a long time.' He also hailed 'one of the most productive stretches in Senate history,' and oddly told the president: 'We wouldn't be here without you.'

After he signed it, Biden presented the pen he used to ink the Inflation Reduction Act – a name Manchin said he coined – to the West Virginian who kept Washington in suspense for 18 months.

'It was a nice gesture,' Manchin told reporters afterwards.

'Nice gesture': Biden gave the pen he used to sign the Inflation Reduction Act into law to Sen. Joe Manchin, who infuriated Democrats by killing Build Back Better but then negotiated the measure with Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (center).

'Nice gesture': Biden gave the pen he used to sign the Inflation Reduction Act into law to Sen. Joe Manchin, who infuriated Democrats by killing Build Back Better but then negotiated the measure with Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (center). 

Manchin was seated in the front row of the State Dining room for the event

Manchin was seated in the front row of the State Dining room for the event

Biden hugs U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm after Biden signed "The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022" into law

Biden hugs U.S. Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm after Biden signed "The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022" into law

Manchin praised Biden and bashed Republicans for not voting for a package he said 'puts confidence in the market.' He also credited the president's decision to stand back after the initial deal blew up, infuriating Manchin's fellow Democrats.

As a former senator, Biden knows that 'sometimes you've got to just let us do what we gotta do,' Manchin told reporters. 

Manchin also bristled when pressed on estimates the bill would not bring down inflation in the near term. 'Well immediately it's not. We never said anything would happen immediately – like today, turn the switch on,' he said. 

Biden made clear he intends to use the new measure as a cudgel against Republicans.

'In this historic moment, Democrats sided with the American people and every single Republican in the Congress sided with the special interests,' he said. 'Every single one.'

'Every single Republican in Congress voted against lowering prescription drug prices. Against lowering health care costs. Against a fairer tax system. Every single Republican – every single one – voted against tackling the climate crisis.' 

He also had words for people, including many in his own party, who wrote off the chances of success. 'Too often we confuse setbacks with defeat,' Biden said. 

Biden returned to the White House from vacation Tuesday to sign the bill that party leaders snatched from the jaws of defeat – only to jet home to Delaware after a very brief victory lap.

The House passed the bill Friday 220-207 on a party-line vote after it squeaked through the Senate 51-50 with all Democrats and Vice President Kamala Harris voting for it under the reconciliation process, which protected it from a Republican filibuster.


It ranks as one of Biden's top legislative achievements, and the president scheduled a bill signing in the State Dining Room of the White House to champion.

It comes after a rested Biden returns from vacation on Kiawah Island, South Carolina at the home of a Democratic donor following a bout with covid and a subsequent rebound case.

According to the White House schedule, Biden will be at the building for barely more than five hours.

The Bidens got more bad health news on Tuesday, when the White House announced that first lady Jill Biden had tested positive for covid on a PCR test.

She will remain in South Carolina, whereas Biden will jet to the couple's Wilmington home shortly after signing the bill. 

Biden tested negative Tuesday morning on an antigen test, and will mask in indoor settings for 10 days when he is close to other people, according to the White House. 

He will be back on the road soon, as he seeks to sell the legislation and give Democrats a boost as they try to cling to control of the House and Senate, where the party has seen poll gains in some key Senate races of late. 

'In the coming weeks, the President will host a Cabinet meeting focused on implementing the Inflation Reduction Act, will travel across the country to highlight how the bill will help the American people, and will host an event to celebrate the enactment of the bill at the White House on September 6,' according to the White House.

The bill includes $430 billion in spending, raises $737 billion over a decade in revenue, and is projected to shave about $300 billion off the deficit. It raises $265 billion by allowing the government to negotiate with drug companies for lower Medicare prescription drug costs.

Its climate provisions, totaling $369 billion, are projected to cut carbon emissions by 40 per cent from earlier levels, and it includes extensions of Affordable Care Act subsidies totaling $64 billion. 

The new excise tax on stock buybacks came at the insistence of Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), after she nixed a provision to close the 'carried interest loophole.' Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) had negotiated that provision with Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer when the two reached a deal that suddenly revived the stalled legislation.

It jettisoned many of the key social programs from Biden's original Build Back Better proposal, but gave Democrats a piece of legislation to run on as the parties start the push before the fall elections. 

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