Democrats are awaiting a decision from Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., on whether she will back the latest iteration of President Joe Biden's "Build Back Better" agenda.
Sinema declined to answer questions on Thursday regarding the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, which grows out of a deal struck between Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., after months of impasse.
The moderate Democrat has already expressed support for a provision that establishes a 15% minimum tax for companies earning more than $1 billion. However, it is still unclear where she stands on closing the carried interest tax loophole.
Last year, Sinema stated that she was opposed to closing the loophole, which allows asset managers to pay a 20% capital gains tax rate on income earned from managing profitable investments, Insider noted.
"I know this has been something that Sen. Sinema had concerns about. And I don't think they checked with her beforehand," said Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, a member of the Senate Finance Committee.
A Democrat senator told The Hill that Sinema, uncharacteristically, skipped a special caucus meeting on Thursday where Schumer explained the deal and addressed concerns.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the senator said Sinema was reviewing the text and will wait to see how it eventually turns out.
Sinema has been a consistent thorn in the side of Senate Democrats as they try to push forward the Biden administration's climate and social spending plans. Like her Democrat colleague Manchin, she has repeatedly thwarted the legislative initiatives of Democrats — including President Joe Biden — with cautious no votes tied to concerns about excessive spending.
Earlier this year, the senator was censured by her own state party after voting, along with Manchin, in favor of maintaining the filibuster, NPR reported at the time.
Even after renewed calls in July to eliminate the filibuster again after the Supreme Court overruled Roe v. Wade, a spokesperson for Sinema said her position "has not changed."
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