Staring at midterm elections that could cost them control of Congress, Democrats are trying to sculpt a 2022 legislative agenda that would generate achievements and reassure voters that they’re addressing pocketbook problems and can govern competently.
Last year, President Joe Biden and congressional Democrats notched two massive accomplishments: a $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief bill and a $1 trillion infrastructure package. Yet also imprinted on voters’ minds are the months of Democratic infighting over priorities that saw holdouts embarrass Biden and party leaders by scuttling two top goals: their roughly $2 trillion, 10-year social and environment measure and voting rights legislation.
That’s led Democrats to seek wins they can claim this election year in a Congress they steer with almost no votes to spare, often against solid Republican opposition. They’re also debating the value of crafting popular bills and essentially daring GOP lawmakers to defeat them, producing fodder for campaign ads but also reminding constituents of Democrats’ 2021 failures.
