Yesterday the House passed the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, sending it to President Biden’s desk, where he’s sure to sign it.

While it’s imperfect and, as with all legislation, contains several compromises, it’s a major legislative win for the Democrats. A party that, a few weeks ago, seemed in disarray. The Dems are not used to passing much impactful legislation, unfortunately, so this one will hit them hard.

The name of the bill is a bit misleading, I think, after all the changes. It’s core actions are less about inflation than they are about climate action, health care, and taxes.

Let’s be honest, this is the largest climate legislation passed in the US, with $370B dedicated to climate action and energy. Much needed steps to getting us closer to our carbon reduction goals.

It empowers Medicare to negotiate prescription drug prices, leveraging huge buying power to drive down drug prices. It also expands health insurance subsidies started under the Affordable Care Act.

All of this is to be funded by changes to minimum corporate tax on companies with book profits over $1B in recent years, funding for the IRS to chase tax dodgers (especially those making over $400k/ year), and a 1% excise tax on stock buybacks.

In all, it’s estimated to drive down the deficit by $120B (CBO rating) - $300B, depending on the estimate.

And what about inflation? Unclear. Penn Wharton Business School predicts it might not help with inflation until 2024, while others disagree. But it won’t have a big impact on inflation, though some say it will help the Fed by having policy aligned with the Fed’s goals.

Is your head swirling yet? I’m sure it is for the Dems trying to figure out what to do with these feeling of passing major, impactful legislation.

But I think it’s progress.

sensing a pattern here. Yes, I can imagine it’s tough to be a police officer. Yet it seems that the more they are criticized for failures and lack of response, the more funding they wind up getting.

Even here in San Francisco (which is not as progressive as many people think) - we’ve had years now of reports where police just decline to investigate crimes. Or worse, reports in the newspaper of police turning their backs on a crime in progress (such as store break-ins) and doing nothing, even when citizens are yelling at them to act. And no, it doesn’t have to do with prosecutorial approach. Besides, that’s not their job to worry about with a crime in progress.

Yet even here, the mayor is increasing police funding. It’s like, the worse they do, the more funding they seem to get. Because crime stokes a primal fear in people and many are unwilling to see that more police, more tactical gear, more weapons, are not the answer.

Uvalde is a prime example. That city spends a huge portion of its budget on police. Didn’t help the kids.

And this isn’t even getting into the recurring issues of police brutality, racial discrimination, etc.

At some point we’ll have to face that more police and funding for ever more outrageous weapons are not the answers.