Politico's playbook lauded President Biden as one of the most "legislatively successful presidents of the modern era" on Sunday after the Senate passed the Inflation Reduction Act.
"Passage of the Inflation Reduction Act will make Biden one of the most legislatively successful presidents of the modern era. We once noted that the mismatch between the size of Biden’s ambitions and his margins in Congress made it seem like he was trying to pass a rhinoceros through a garden hose. It ended up being more like a pony, but it’s still pretty impressive," the Playbook authors wrote.
The authors, Ryan Lizza and Eugene Daniels, wrote that there was "not much debate anymore" over whether Biden is a consequential president.
Politico's playbook also noted that Biden was free to leave isolation after testing negative for COVID-19 and that his 16-day quarantine "happened to coincide with the best stretch of his presidency so far."
BIDEN COMPLAINED TO REPORTERS ABOUT NEGATIVE COVERAGE OF HIS ADMINISTRATION: POLITICO
The authors also praised the scope of Biden's agenda.
"That’s a nearly $3.5 trillion agenda. The scope of the issues addressed is notable: the pandemic and its economic fallout, highways, bridges, broadband, rail, manufacturing, science, prescription drug prices, health insurance, climate change, deficit reduction and tax equity," the playbook said.
The Sente passed the Inflation Reduction Act through reconciliation on Sunday after a marathon vote-a-rama. The bill is a very scaled back version of Biden's original Build Back Better legislation.
The Politico Playbook writers also noted that this does not guarantee electoral victory for Biden or the Democrats in the midterms.
Biden's approval remains in the thirties as many Democratic lawmakers have called his age and ability to lead the party into question as the midterms and the 2024 presidential election looms.
Politico reported in early July that Democrats were full of "outright worry" over Biden's leadership.
"With the 2022 elections four months away, Democrats both inside and outside of the White House acknowledge there is no silver bullet to slay a host of political problems," the report read.
The July piece said there was "hope that some of those problems would abate," but added that "there is diminishing confidence in that now."
The Democrats saw a glimmer of hope for their agenda recently when Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., announced they came to an agreement on the spending bill, which was re-branded as the Inflation Reduction Act.
"I now propose and will vote for the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022. Rather than risking more inflation with trillions in new spending, this bill will cut the inflation taxes Americans are paying, lower the cost of health insurance and prescription drugs, and ensure our country invests in the energy security and climate change solutions," Manchin said in a statement.
