Just when it seemed that Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) had killed the Democrats’ agenda for good, Manchin cut a deal with Senate majority leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) on Thursday to revive legislation that would invest billions of dollars in carbon capture and clean energy, allow Medicare to negotiate the price of some drugs and extend health insurance subsidies, and raise taxes on the wealthy and corporations.

The Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is a fraction of the size and ambition of the agenda spending package that Democrats debated for much of last year, thanks to the efforts of corporate lobbyists, conservative Democrats, and pundits who have blamed government aid to families during the pandemic for inflation — rather than the supply chain crisis or corporate profiteering. While the legislation would make important investments in clean energy and health care, it simultaneously props up the fossil fuel industry chiefly responsible for the climate crisis.

The Democrats’ original climate and social spending proposal, a $6 trillion package pitched by Senate Budget Committee chairman Bernie Sanders (I-VT) last June, included major investments to address infrastructure, affordable housing, and the climate crisis. Democrats eventually settled on a $3.5 trillion package that Senator Manchin ultimately spiked late last year. The latest proposal totals $700 billion in investments.