All three top leaders have faced intra-party complaints that 21st-century politics have passed them by. If they can unite Democratic factions to pass anything resembling the administration’s $4 trillion economic package, they will stamp their answer in history books.
Biden has been on the national political stage for fully one-fifth of US history. In his 2020 campaign, Democratic rivals cast his views on achieving social and economic progress as outdated; in the presidency, Republicans and conservative media have portrayed him as doddering and feeble.
Yet each of the three brings notable skills to the task of shoving a large agenda through the narrow funnel that the barest of House and Senate majorities allow.
“In the five-plus decades I’ve been around Congress, I’ve never seen a stronger and more effective leader than Nancy Pelosi,” said Norman Ornstein, a leading expert on Congress at the American Enterprise Institute. “She has a great feel for what it takes to move votes when you need them.”
Schumer, who has spent 40 years on Capitol Hill, is in his first year as majority leader. During his first three months, he united all 50 Senate Democrats behind Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief bill — a feat he must repeat to pass the administration’s economic package.
“Anything that reduces fear is conducive to negotiations,” observed Sarah Binder, a political scientist at George Washington University.
Success or failure will turn on the three leaders’ ability to finesse standoffs over voting schedules as well as the contours of the package. Last week the President tried the rhetorical device of asserting that because he has proposed enough tax hikes to finance his spending plans, the true cost of his package is zero.
“I think we’re going to land the plane,” predicted Sen. Chris Van Hollen of Maryland, reflecting the cautious optimism of Democratic leaders. Another harrowing flight away from financial crisis by raising the federal debt limit will follow soon.
“This generation may possess the ability to get out of the box,” Jentleson said. “It’s up to the next generation to build a better box.”