What A Day - Two Bills With One Vote with Representative Pramila Jayapal

Episode Date: August 12, 2021

Senators Joe Manchin and Krysten Sinema say they might not support a budget bill with a $3.5 trillion price tag, but Democrats in the House won't support the bipartisan $1.2 trillion infrastructure package unless the larger bill passes, too. We spoke with Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal about how House progressives are thinking about these two crucial bills.America is facing two major heat waves in the Pacific Northwest and in the eastern and central U.S. Abroad, there are wildfires burning in Canada, Russia, Greece, Algeria, Turkey, and Italy, all fueled by extreme heat and dry vegetation, and causing evacuations and mass destruction.And in headlines: rebel Tigray and Oromo forces announce an alliance against Ethiopia's government, Texas House Democrats may face arrest for their exodus, and NASA's next space suit is delayed.Show Notes:NYT: “Hidden Toll of the Northwest Heat Wave: Hundreds of Extra Deaths” – https://nyti.ms/2U8rREeFor a transcript of this episode, please visit crooked.com/whataday

It's Thursday, August 12th. I'm Gideon Resnick. And I am Priyanka Arabindi and this is What A Day, where we will not pet a dog unless they have a vaccine verification. I will consider walking one. That's as far as I'll go. If there's an unvaccinated dog that's like six feet away, that seems safe to me. I mean, less than six feet, get away from me. Right. On today's show, the CDC strongly recommends the COVID vaccine for pregnant people.

Plus, NASA says its next moon mission might be delayed because astronauts need new spacesuits. But first, let's talk about the latest from Congress. Our members are still very clear that a majority of our progressive caucus will vote on the bipartisan bill only after the Senate has passed the reconciliation bill. That was the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, Representative Pramila Jayapal. You got a chance to talk with her yesterday, Gideon, about the two big spending bills that lawmakers are currently debating. And there's been a lot of movement on it in the past week. So please get us all up to speed. Yeah, I think I have all this right. But as a quick refresher, the $1.2 trillion infrastructure deal passed on Tuesday with the support of 19 Republican senators. That bill has things like improvements for roads, bridges,

internet, things like that, roads, bridges, internet, things like that, physical infrastructure. Awesome. Awesome stuff. And then early yesterday morning, the other $3.5 trillion budget blueprint was approved as well. All 50 Democratic senators voted to advance that. So when it comes to that second one, the challenge is actually turning it into actual legislation down the road, legislation that can accomplish major goals like Medicare expansion, universal pre-K, family leave, financing domestic manufacturing of electric vehicles, create a civilian climate corps, and a lot more. That's a lot, but it sounds like there is a but coming. There is. There is at least one that is on the way. Okay, so here it is. Just hours after that vote happened, Senator Joe Manchin, a Democratic senator, all 50

voted to advance this. Surprise, surprise, said that he didn't think he could support an ultimate budget bill with that $3.5 trillion price tag attached to it. You know, same surprise, surprise. Yep. Same story, different day. And then Senator Kyrsten Sinema has basically taken the same stance. Vote to advance this, but not necessarily support something of that cost.

So where does that leave us? The blueprint is now going to the House, where we're expecting that members are likely to take it up the week of August 23rd. Great, guys. That is just great stuff. If that budget bill gets hung up in the Senate, that's going to be a big deal for the other bill, because in the House, there are some interesting dynamics playing out with the Congressional Progressive Caucus. Gideon, give us the scoop. What is going

on here? Okay, so basically, as Jayapal told me earlier and has repeatedly been saying, House progressives are just not going to support the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package that passed the Senate until and unless the Senate also passes that other bill we were talking about, the $3.5 trillion reconciliation one that can fit all of those other priorities. And per Politico, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is on board with that strategy too, despite some recent rumblings from other Democrats in the House who want to take a vote on the infrastructure bill alone. Now, the margins in the House are really slim.

So the votes of these progressive Democrats are quite important to how this is all going to shake out. That's why there's been a spirited back and forth on this and why we're even talking about it right now. But another argument that House progressives have been making is that Democrats shouldn't really risk scuttling the passage of the reconciliation bill. Otherwise, they would effectively be going against the agenda of the president. And as Congresswoman Jayapal mentioned, Biden previously said aloud that going big is not really the issue for Democrats. I mean, when we did the American Rescue Plan, he said constantly, the problem is not that we go too big, it's that we go too small. That was true for the Rescue Plan and COVID, but it's also true for climate change and the Build Back Better plan. And so if you

remember, our first push was for $6 to $10 trillion to really address these crises, including climate, at the rate that we need to address them. Yeah, she also rebutted that overall argument about the big price tag, which is what she's really been hearing from her conservative colleagues. Everyone goes along with the tax increases on the wealthiest and the corporations, something that is ridiculously popular across the country with Republicans, independents and Democrats. Don't see an issue with anything she's saying. It seems like a lot of the Democrats are saying that the fate of these two bills has to be linked. And something that ties into your conversation yesterday about the big U.N. climate report is that that $3.5 trillion budget bill is intended to have provisions to address climate change. In a moment, we'll talk about the extreme weather that the world is facing right now. But has either this weather or this report changed the tenor of the

conversations about this bill? I don't know if it's like really moving the mansion mines as it were so far. But Congresswoman Jayapal said it just added more credence to the argument that her caucus has been making for a long time now, and that the question of financial cost is irrelevant when we're thinking about the cost of doing nothing, which is the cost of losing the planet. And she, like most Americans, was experiencing the real-time effects of our burning planet as we spoke. I mean, I'm sitting here in Seattle. We have yet another heat wave that has hit us this week. And we have yet another set of conditions that people in Seattle never thought we would see. And I'll tell you that already, you know, what we're doing is far less clean energy standards, the civilian climate core, you know, big investments in transit. I mean, all of these things are really critical for us to do. And I just think the cost is not having a planet. Yeah, that's it. Right. So that's the latest on

Congress as it works to pass those two big spending bills. But that leads us right into this next topic of extreme weather. Once again, Priyanka, what is the latest on all this? Yeah, there is so much happening across the world right now in terms of extreme weather. I thought we could follow up on what Congresswoman Jayapal was saying and that big climate report with a rundown of what's going on here and abroad, just so you have the context on how severe this has become. Yeah, it is beyond comprehension. So first off, here in America, we're experiencing yet another massive heat wave. Two, actually. So right now, there are major heat waves on both sides of the country that are

affecting all of the lower 48 states. As a result, 175 million Americans are currently under excessive heat warnings and advisories through this weekend. So if you live in America, whether you know it or not, this most likely applies to you right in America, whether you know it or not, this most likely applies to you right now. The most intense temperatures at the moment are in the Pacific Northwest, which, if you remember, has already been scorched this summer. The warning that they're currently under extends from Western Oregon and Washington into Northwest California, where the Dixie Fire is still continuing to burn.

For the record, the Dixie Fire is the second largest that California has ever experienced, and it's still growing with only 25% of it contained. Yeah, I hate the fact that every day is a new climate record of some shape or form. So what then about this second heat wave do we need to know? Yeah, so on the other end of the country, the eastern and central U.S. are experiencing extreme heat as well, with cities like Chicago, New York, Philly, D.C. and Detroit all under heat advisories. Like the climate report said, climate change fueled by humans is why we're seeing things like this happen more frequently and at way more extreme levels. Yeah. And also, as this happens,

it's becoming very, very fatal for people to like that's the other reminder here is there's a deadly human cost as well. Yeah, so the New York Times has a report on this that we will link to in our show notes. But it says that during the last major heatwave in June across Oregon and Washington State, 600 more people died than would have been typical during that same time period. That is insane. Yeah, that's three times higher than the state's official estimates. And it suggests that the impact of the heat wave may have been even larger than what was originally reported. So if you're in areas that are experiencing heat waves and extreme temperatures this week, please, please be safe. Let this be a reminder to stay hydrated and drink plenty of water. Check in on your neighbors, your family and community members who might not have access to the resources to stay cool.

And do your best to avoid being outside during the hottest hours of the day. Gideon, I know you're a really big runner, but maybe not this week. I don't know. Yeah, if I don't show up tomorrow, we'll have a couple of reasons why to point to. But in all seriousness, so the dual heat waves are just two of the extreme weather events that are happening right this very moment. There are so many others around the world. What are some of those other ones to watch right now? Yeah, it is really mind-blowing to see all the weather events that are happening right now.

Currently, there are wildfires burning in the western U.S. and Canada that most of us know about and have seen in the newspapers. But there are also ones in Russia, Greece, Algeria, Turkey, and Italy, with the ones in Siberia being larger than all of the others combined. Wow. Just, yeah, really terrifying stuff. Just like in the U.S., the wildfires abroad are being fueled by extreme heat and dry vegetation and are causing evacuations and mass destruction of people's homes and livelihoods. And fires aren't all. We're also in the midst of hurricane season. As of recording last night, Tropical Depression Fred is currently affecting the Caribbean

and heading towards Florida by tomorrow. Really just not great news, but it's so important to realize the scale and intensity that our climate disaster has reached. We will continue to keep you updated on what's happening, what we can do about it, and the actions that we need governments and corporations to take to prevent this from getting even worse. has reached. We will continue to keep you updated on what's happening, what we can do about it, and the actions that we need governments and corporations to take to prevent this from getting even worse. But that is the latest for now. It's Wednesday, WOD Squad, and for today's Temp Check,

we are talking about recalls of unfortunate merch. A company called Lingua Franca is now offering to alter sweaters it sold last year that said, quote-unquote, Cuomo sexual or, quote-unquote, Cuomo for president. Following an AG's report about the governor showing a pattern of sexual harassment and his subsequent resignation, both of which happened quite recently. The sweaters cost over $300. So it'd be a shame to just throw them away, I guess. Instead, reformed Cuomo sexuals can have the sweaters embroidered with a phrase of their choice.

One existing option sold by Ligua Franca says, let boys cry. And I'll just say that is what i am already planning on going with but priyanka what are your thoughts on this move by lingua franca and do you have any advice for people that are buying topical political merch oh my god so many thoughts uh all right so first of all if you bought this um you bought this sweater i'm imagining you did it in like a a frenzied moment of passion in like maybe april or may of last year um and i think like this kind of applies to all purchases but like maybe we should stop and think for a moment about if this is a thing we are going to wear more than once if this is something that you want to be seen in public wearing, like I don't even know

in the height of like Andrew Cuomo, like when we thought he was maybe okay, like that was anything you want to be seen in. I don't know. I just, we talked a lot about climate and the disasters that we're currently facing. Maybe we shouldn't be buying things that we're only going to use or wear one time, especially if they're $380. That is just my thought. So yeah, I think with all purchases, be them 300 or more or less, it is important that we take a beat and say, read the words that are on your sweater aloud a couple times and see how people in the room are responding to them. If you were going to buy anything during COVID also, just let it be a sweatsuit. Let it be something that is practical practical and makes sense exactly go home and embroider it yourself that way you will not

encounter these problems but just like that we have checked our temps good luck if you are in this particular position I suppose with a expensive sweater that you can't wear we'll be back after some ads. Let's wrap up with some headlines. Headlines. Rebel Tigray forces in Ethiopia announced that they have formed an alliance with rebels from Ethiopia's most populous region, Oromia. This is the latest development in a conflict that started last November after a

fallout between Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed and Tigray leaders. Nine months later, thousands of people have been killed and many more have fled or are victims of atrocities committed by the Ethiopian military. A new report from Amnesty International revealed that women and girls in the Tigray region became victims of systemic sex crimes by Ethiopian and allied forces. The conflict has also led to a hunger crisis affecting over 400,000 people. Now the Tigray People's Liberation Front will combine forces with the Oromo Liberation Army to fight against the government forces. Oromo leaders claim that similar talks are also going on with other regions.

The CDC updated guidance urging pregnant people to get vaccinated against COVID-19, referencing new safety data that found no increased risk of miscarriage among people who received the vaccine within the first 20 weeks of gestation. Though there isn't much data on birth outcomes since the vaccine has only been available since December of last year, researchers argue that the risks of COVID during pregnancy outweigh the theoretical prenatal risks of the vaccine. In more vaccine news, California became the first state to require the vaccines for COVID for educators and school staff. National teachers unions estimate that 90% of teachers across the country have already been vaccinated at this point. But this new requirement targets school support staff like bus drivers and janitors who have lower inoculation rates. The FDA may also approve third vaccine doses for the

immunocompromised, depending on how the vote goes when the CDC advisory group meets this Friday. That is a lot of really good vaccine news. And what sticks out to me specifically is the guidance for pregnant people. That's great. Texas House Democrats who committed the crime of hating voter suppression might now be facing arrest. Last month, over four dozen Texas Democrats fled the state chambers and went to D.C. to prevent the passage of laws that they believe would stifle voting rights. Earlier this week, the Republican-led state House voted along party lines to dispatch officers to enforce the attendance of the missing members. And State House Speaker Dade Phelan has already signed 52 warrants of arrest. All of this came promptly after the conservative Texas Supreme Court overturned a ruling that found that Governor Greg Abbott and Speaker Phelan did not have the right to arrest elected

officials. Yesterday, 11 Democrats were back in the chambers to cast dissenting votes against the enforced arrest of their colleagues. I think they should all like split as different groups and be in little pockets in all 50 states. Run in different directions. Yeah, exactly. That's the easiest way to avoid the situation. The next NASA mission to the moon will likely be delayed due to issues with the astronauts' fits. So new extravehicular spacesuits that are being developed by NASA likely will not be ready

in time for a forecasted 2024 launch. That is according to a report this week from the department's inspector general. So the suits will have cost about a billion dollars to develop by the time they're finished. Probably even more once you buy all the cool patches of flags and various rockets. We need to make a good first impression. Gotta have the patches. Got to have those patches ready to go. Extra vehicular spacesuits let astronauts survive outside the spacecraft, i.e. when they are ghost riding the whip. And this is the first time a new suit of this kind has been built by NASA in over 40 years. NASA's inspector general said April 2025 was the soonest that the spacesuits are going to be ready. At which point, we don't even know if wearing spacesuits will actually still be cool.

Yeah, there's a lot going on here. But I think our biggest takeaway is that we got to look, I mean, the best we possibly can when we are meeting aliens for the first time. But we have no idea what is in style up there, what the season is, what the trends are. So we're going in with no information. This is just going to, we're going to waste a billion dollars. Yeah, this is like the worst version of the dinner with your in-laws type of situation.

And we need to be very careful. And those are the headlines. One more thing before we go the crooked pod hysteria hosted by Aaron Ryan and Alyssa Mastromonaco has had excellent interviews lately. That includes Amanda Knox, Senator Tammy Baldwin, astrophysicist Dr. Chanda Prescott Weinstein, Akilah Green of Black Lady Sketch Show, and more. New episodes of Asteria drop every Thursday. You should listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts. That is all for today. If you liked the show, make sure you subscribe. We review Ghost Ride the Whip and tell your friends to listen. And if you're into reading and not just phrases sewn into sweaters like me, what a day.

It's also a nightly newsletter. Check it out and subscribe at crooked.com slash subscribe. I'm Priyanka Arabindi. I'm Gideon Resnick. And back off, dogs. They have fake vaccine cards, all of them. They're not always. I would love to see Pundit don't back off

come over here that'd be great what a day is a production of crooked media it's recorded and mixed by charlotte landis sonia tun and jazzy marine are our associate producers and kelly satakun is our intern our head writer is john milstein and our executive producers are leo duran me. Our theme music is by Colin Gilliard and Kshaka.