As we reported earlier, there’s an ongoing “vote-a-rama” happening on the Manchin-Schumer deal, where the Republicans are trying to offer amendments to blunt the harm of the bill and expose the Democratic lies about it. Democrats claimed the additional 87,000 IRS agents were about going after billionaires. But when an amendment was introduced to restrict the application of the bill to those making over $400,000, Democrats voted it down.

But now, there was a last-minute roadblock with the bill, and it came from Sen. Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ).

Let me try to explain this in short bursts.

1. The bill does NOT have 50 votes at the moment.
2. B/c @SenatorSinema opposes how the corp. minimum tax (15%) would apply to some businesses w/ subsidiaries, notably including hedge fund and private equity.

2/

— Lisa Desjardins (@LisaDNews) August 7, 2022

SO WHERE ARE WE:

– Democrats do not have 50 votes for this bill in reality at the moment.
– Though they have 50 in theory IF they can work things out w/ Sinema.
– At the moment though, this is a rather tough stare-down.

And it is not clear how long, how this will resolve.

— Lisa Desjardins (@LisaDNews) August 7, 2022

Sinema was in discussions with Senate GOP Whip John Thune over an amendment regarding the 15 percent corporate minimum tax. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) was also involved in the discussions.

The issue has been percolating since Saturday after Sinema discovered language in a draft of the bill showing how subsidiaries of companies owned by private equity firms could be hit by the 15% corporate minimum tax if their combined book income exceeds $1 billion, according to a Senate source familiar with the matter.

If Sinema succeeds in altering that provision, the bill would raise $35 billion less in revenue, potentially reducing the roughly $300 billion in deficit savings, which is a key priority for Manchin.

In a potential problem for Democrats, Sinema could back a Thune amendment to exempt those companies from the corporate minimum tax – and pay for the lost revenue by extending for a year a limitation on individuals’ state and local tax deductions through 2026.

But if they do that, that increases the possibility that they lose Democrats in the House who want those limitations repealed.

If they resolve it according to that amendment, they might still lose the House vote then.