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Delivered daily by 8 a.m., Morning Money examines the latest news in finance politics and policy. | | | | | |  | | By Ben White | Editor’s Note: Morning Money is a free version of POLITICO Pro Financial Services' morning newsletter, which is delivered to our s each morning at 6 a.m. The POLITICO Pro platform combines the news you need with tools you can use to take action on the day’s biggest stories. Act on the news with POLITICO Pro. | | | Infrastructure passes … yay? — The Senate cleared the bipartisan infrastructure bill fairly easily (as expected). But there remains a very tough road ahead to get the measure through the House alongside the $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation package. And perhaps, at some point, raising the debt ceiling. Via our Tanya Snyder: “Democrats must keep their own party in line as they attempt to move the infrastructure bill forward in the House … At the moment, though, backers of the bipartisan deal are in a mood to celebrate. … “Sen. Jerry Moran (R-Kan.), one of the original 11 Republicans to sign onto the bipartisan bill, voted against it in the end because it will add to the debt. The House poses its own set of questions. … Speaker Nancy Pelosi has repeatedly said she won't bring the infrastructure bill to a floor vote until the Senate also passes the reconciliation bill, a process that could take months.” Biden gets a win (for now) — Via our Christopher Cadelago and Laura Barrón-López: “For months, White House negotiators had a clear directive from the president: Whatever you do, find a way to get to ‘yes’ with Republicans. … “The passage of the bill caps a remarkable stretch of negotiations between the administration and the Senate, one that moderates from both parties believe could serve as a blueprint for future agreements. In a victory lap after Senate passage … Biden took aim at those who consider bipartisanship ‘a relic of an earlier age.’” About that debt limit — Thanks for the TONS of responses to our call for your thoughts on why Dems don’t just jam a debt limit hike through as soon as possibly be whatever vehicle is available. Nancy Vanden Houten, lead economist at Oxford Economics, emails: “Like you, I’m puzzled by the Democratic strategy on the debt limit. Sure, they’d prefer not to have to vote to hike the debt limit without GOP votes, but is that worth giving Republicans leverage on the issue? “I don’t think so. Seems like something of an unforced error. I also wonder how focused voters are on the debt or debt limit these days…seems like less than 10 years ago. Considering the American Rescue Plan, infrastructure and perhaps another big spending bill, Democrats will have a lot to campaign on to counter debt limit attacks from the GOP.” GOOD WEDNESDAY MORNING — Email me on bwhite@politico.com and follow me on Twitter @ morningmoneyben. | | | | STEP INSIDE THE WEST WING: What's really happening in West Wing offices? Find out who's up, who's down, and who really has the president’s ear in our West Wing Playbook newsletter, the insider's guide to the Biden White House and Cabinet. For buzzy nuggets and details that you won't find anywhere else, subscribe today. | | | | | MORE ON THE DEBT LIMIT via a corporate lobbyist: “‘Vote no, hope yes’ by GOP backbenchers has done tremendous damage to the Republican Party’s ability to articulate a message or to govern. “The party as a whole has basically adopted it as their approach to the debt ceiling. It seems like Schumer is basically taking the same approach as Boehner did at times and forcing the ‘vote no hope yes’ folks to go on the record on a high-profile vote.” DEMS PASS GIANT BUDGET BLUEPRINT — WSJ’s Kristina Peterson, Andrew Duehren and Eliza Collins: “The Senate passed a $3.5 trillion budget blueprint early Wednesday, the first step in an arduous process designed to allow Democrats to push through a sweeping package of education, healthcare, climate and other provisions without GOP support. “The Democrat-only vote, 50-49, came just before 4 a.m., a day after the Senate passed a roughly $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package. It is an initial victory for … Biden and congressional Democrats who are seeking to pass as much of their legislative agenda as possible this year, before next year’s midterm elections overtake Capitol Hill.” CUOMO NO MO — Our Anna Gronewold in Albany on NY governor Andrew Cuomo’s decision to quit in the face of unrelenting pressure and likely impeachment: “It was a rapid decision, announced in a live video, that took nearly everyone — except for a few senior aides who were told Monday — by surprise. … “Much of New York’s political sphere was still bracing for a long and bloody battle before Cuomo would relinquish his grasp on his title of more than a decade. It was expected to take weeks before he’d be impeached — and longer, still, before he could be stripped of his office. BUT HIS LEGACY LIVES ON — Our Bill Mahoney: “Albany doesn’t have … Cuomo to kick around anymore. But it could take years to expel his loyalists — and move on from his alleged misdeeds. “Denizens of the New York State Capitol celebrated … with longtime foes of the soon to be former governor drinking champagne and pondering a future without Cuomo at the top. There was widespread praise for incoming Gov. Kathy Hochul, with many expressing an eagerness to move past the distractions of the past six months” | | | CRYPTOCURRENCIES POISED FOR A TAX OVERHAUL — Our Brian Faler and Kellie Mejdrich: “Cryptocurrencies and how to tax them were nowhere on Congress’s radar until they were suddenly center stage with the Senate’s bipartisan infrastructure package. “After much wrangling and controversy, lawmakers … approved, as part of the plan, what would be their first-ever crackdown on cryptocurrencies and taxes, without changes sought by the industry. It now heads to the House, where some lawmakers have vowed to press for changes that would address the crypto world’s concerns, though that appears to be a longshot.” HOW THE BIPARTISAN BILL CAME TOGETHER — Our Burgess Everett and Marianne LeVine: “Moments before he blessed their bipartisan infrastructure agreement … Biden made a critical promise to five GOP senators he'd gathered in the Oval Office. “On that sunny June afternoon, sitting with the five Republicans and their five Democratic negotiating partners, Biden assured them that he wouldn't endorse their deal and then later attach new physical infrastructure they didn't agree on to another bill. Referring to the legislative brute force his party wields thanks to its full control of Washington, the president told the GOP senators in the room: ‘I won't add something back in reconciliation that you guys didn't do.’” BIDEN RACES TO HIRE SENIOR STAFF AT DRAINED AGENCIES — Our Alex Zhao and Daniel Lippman: “The Biden administration is racing to rebuild senior agency roles depleted by the previous president, hiring at the fastest rate in decades, a POLITICO analysis found. “In the first three months of 2021, the Biden administration hired more than twice as many senior government executives than Donald Trump did in the same timeframe, a staffing spree aimed at rebuilding agencies rocked by turmoil during Trump’s war on the so-called deep state.” GOP SENATORS PLEDGE TO BLOCK DEBT LIMIT HIKE — WSJ’s Siobhan Hughes and Kate Davidson: “Most Republican senators have signed on to a pledge to force Democrats to raise the debt ceiling through procedures that don’t rely on GOP votes, escalating the political tug of war over who is responsible for keeping the U.S. from defaulting. “Sen. Ron Johnson (R., Wis.) said in an interview that some 46 Republicans have signed on to a letter that he circulated during a rapid-fire series of votes on a budget resolution that kicks off Democrats’ efforts to pass a $3.5 trillion cornerstone of … Biden’s agenda. ‘They shouldn’t be expecting Republicans to raise the debt ceiling to accommodate their deficit spending,’ Mr. Johnson said.” | | | TRANSITIONS — Via the White House, Joshua Frost, is the nominee for Assistant Secretary for Financial Markets at Treasury … NEW WATCHDOG REPORT — Per release: “Accountable.US is releasing a new report finding several major corporations that have already spoken out and/or lobbied against the tax provisions in the Biden jobs and human infrastructure blueprint have sordid histories of tax avoidance and tax schemes, amounting to billions of dollars in lost federal revenue.” WEEKEND WEDDING — Nick Tropin, a principal at Ledge Harbor Management, this weekend married Elise Sarda, a chief of staff at Helio Health Group. The couple met at Stratton through mutual friends on the chairlift and got married at Chatham Bars Inn on Cape Cod NEW CFPB LETTER — Per release: “[A] new letter from a coalition of 15 national orgs that urges Acting CFPB Director David Uejio to issue rules giving consumers more control over their financial data. The letter comes after President Biden included a similar directive in his recent EO on competition policy.” | | | | Be a Policy Pro. POLITICO Pro has a free policy resource center filled with our best practices on building relationships with state and federal representatives, demonstrating ROI, and influencing policy through digital storytelling. Read our free guides today . | | | | | | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Follow us | | | | |  |
