Pittsburgh bridge collapses, injures 10 — just hours before Biden set to visit city for infrastructure talk



A Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, bridge collapsed early Friday morning, injuring at least 10 people, according to reports.

The snowy collapse took place just hours before President Joe Biden is set to visit the city for an infrastructure address.

What are the details?

The collapse took place in the the area of Forbes and Braddock Avenues just before 7 a.m. local time on Friday.

Neighbor Wendy Stroh told KDKA-TV that the sound of the collapse was terrifying.

"It sounded like a huge snow plow," she said, "pushing along the surface with no snow. I didn't know what it was. ... It was very frightening."

Later Friday morning, Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire Chief Darryl Jones told reporters that at least 10 people were injured in the collapse. Three people were transported to area hospitals for treatment, but none of the reported injuries were life-threatening.

Pittsburgh Mayor Ed Gainey (D) said that the bridge, which spans across Hot Dog Dam Dog Park, was inspected in September.

Councilman Corey O’Connor told the station that the bridge collapse isn't minor.

“This is a vital road, artery, in our area,” he said. “This is a road that a lot of use in the east end, going around the tunnel. We’re looking at a couple-year closure here possibly.”

According to the Washington Post, several vehicles — including a Port Authority bus — were on the bridge at the time of the collapse.

Port Authority spokesman Adam Brandolph confirmed to the Post that the bus driver and two passengers were able to escape from the collapse without injury.

“We are extremely thankful that no one from the bus reported any injuries, and grateful for the first responders who risked their own lives to save others,” Brandolph told the outlet.

What else?

White House press secretary Jen Psaki tweeted about Biden's visit and said that the administration is "grateful" for the city's first responders.

".@POTUS has been told of the bridge collapse in Pittsburgh," she wrote. "Our team is in touch with state and local officials on the ground as they continue to gather information about the cause of the collapse."

She added, "@POTUS is grateful to the first responders who rushed to assist the drivers who were on the bridge at the time. The President will proceed with trip planned for today and will stay in touch with officials on the ground about additional assistance we can provide."

@POTUS is grateful to the first responders who rushed to assist the drivers who were on the bridge at the time. The President will proceed with trip planned for today and will stay in touch with officials on the ground about additional assistance we can provide.
— Jen Psaki (@Jen Psaki) 1643377655

Biden's tax hikes would cost 1 million jobs in 2 years, study finds



According to a new study from the National Association of Manufacturers, President Joe Biden's plans to significantly increase taxes to pay for his $2.25 trillion infrastructure bill would cost the U.S. economy a whopping one million jobs in just two short years.

The study, conducted by economists at Rice University in Texas, found that if Congress approved the Biden administration's proposals to raise the corporate tax rate from 21% to 28%, pare back tax preferences for so-called pass-through businesses, and increase the capital gains tax on wealthy Americans, among other measures, the result would be devastating for the economy.

"Total employment, measured by hours worked, would fall by 0.7% initially before moderating. The reduction in hours worked would be equivalent to an employment decline of approximately 1 million full-time jobs in 2023," the economists concluded. "Those jobs would still be gone in 2026 before stabilizing."

"The average annual reduction in employment would be equivalent to a loss of 600,000 jobs each year over 10 years," they added.

Biden's so-called infrastructure plan — the bulk of which does not pay for highways, bridges, and roads but funds progressive policy initiatives such as climate research, education, and green energy — is slated to cost more than $2 trillion. To pay for the plan, the administration has proposed the largest tax hike in nearly 30 years.

Included among the tax increases is a hike to the corporate tax rate, which Republicans lowered to 21% from 35% during Donald Trump's presidency. The move was aimed at giving the U.S. a competitive global advantage and preventing American businesses from relocating offshore in search of lower tax rates.

By raising the corporate tax rate to 28%, that competitive advantage would be lost, NAM said in a summary of the study's results. "The conclusion of this study is inescapable — following through with tax hikes that give other countries a clear advantage will mean far fewer jobs created in America."

The administration may have to seek alternatives for paying for the plan if it is to have any chance of passing in Congress, as some moderate Democrats are balking at the tax hikes, along with every Republican.

Last week, swing-vote Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin (W.Va.) threw cold water on the plan, saying he wouldn't support it as is. He specifically cited concerns with raising the corporate tax rate.

"This study tells us quantitatively what manufacturers from coast to coast will tell you qualitatively: increasing the tax burden on companies in America means fewer American jobs. One million jobs would be lost in the first two years, to be exact," NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons added in a statement.

Biden's infrastructure bill hits major road block as Sen. Manchin comes out against it



Swing vote Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin (W.Va.) announced on Monday he does not support President Biden's $2 trillion infrastructure bill as it currently stands, effectively killing the legislation's prospects until changes are made.

The massive spending package, characterized by the administration as an infrastructure bill — despite the bulk of its funding going toward numerous progressive policy priorities — has virtually no chances of earning a single vote from Republicans in Congress. So in order for the bill to pass in the gridlocked Senate, it will need support from every Democratic-voting senator.

With Manchin and potentially other Democrats out on the bill, its chances of passing are bleak, unless significant alterations are made to how the bill is funded.

The moderate senator reportedly broke the news during a radio interview with West Virginia Metro News on Monday, saying, "As the bill exists today, it needs to be changed."

He told host Hoppy Kercheval that he could not support raising the corporate tax rate to 28% from 21%, which has been outlined by Biden's team. The change to the corporate tax rate is just one of several proposed changes slated to amount to the nation's largest federal tax hike in nearly 30 years.

Former President Donald Trump slashed the corporate tax rate to 21% from 35% — a global high — during his time in office, arguing that the rate disadvantaged the U.S. on the global stage and led many American business to relocate offshore.

During the interview, Manchin suggested that while he's against raising the corporate tax rate to 28%, he may be able to support raising it to 25%, citing the need to maintain America's market competitiveness. The worldwide average corporate tax rate is currently just under 24%, according to conservative tax group, the Tax Foundation.

"If I don't vote to get on it, it's not going anywhere," Manchin asserted before adding that he's not the only Democratic lawmaker wary of the economic consequences of the present bill.

"It's more than just me, Hoppy," he said. "There's six or seven other Democrats who feel very strongly about this. We have to be competitive, and we're not going to throw caution to the wind."

News of Manchin's opposition comes after Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm didn't rebuff claims over the weekend that the tax hikes associated with the infrastructure plan could have a devastating economic impact on middle-class Americans.

Biden's energy secretary doesn't deny tax hikes to pay for massive infrastructure plan will 'hit the middle class hard'



Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm didn't deny claims over the weekend that tax hikes associated with the Biden administration's more than $2 trillion infrastructure plan could have a ruinous economic effect on middle-class Americans.

During an interview on Sunday, CNN host Jake Tapper confronted the energy secretary on the issue, citing concerns among Republicans and moderate congressional Democrats about the economic impact of raising taxes.

In the lead-up to his question, Tapper specifically referred to a recent Wall Street Journal editorial that asserted the taxes would "hit the middle class hard — in the value of their 401(k)s, the size of their pay packets, and what they pay for goods and services." He added that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce called the tax increases "dangerously misguided."

To pay for the massive spending package — which goes far beyond funding highways, bridges, and roads to finance a laundry list of progressive political priorities — the administration has proposed the largest tax hike in almost three decades. One of the major changes getting media attention is a proposed increase of the corporate tax rate from 21% to 28%.

Biden Energy Sec Doesn't Deny Biden's Tax Hikes Will “Hit The Middle Class Hard" When Confronted youtu.be

In response, Granholm remarkably didn't raise an objection to the specific claim. Rather, she dodged the question by claiming the administration's corporate tax rate figure is "fair" and a "reasonable middle."

"You recall that just a few years ago the tax rate for corporate taxes was 35%," Granholm said. "When Donald Trump passed his corporate and tax cuts for the wealthy package, he dropped it to a point that nobody was even asking for, which was 21%. So what Joe Biden is saying is, let's put it to a reasonable middle. Let's put us in line with other industrial nations, which is 28%."

The energy secretary then hit back at criticisms by saying, "If you don't like this, then come and tell us how you would pay for it."

"Of the polling that's been done out there on this, more people support paying for infrastructure rather than racking up deficits than not, and that includes Republicans," she argued. "People know that you can't just continue to spend without paying for it. And so what Joe Biden wants to do is to do it in a fair way."

Earlier in the interview, Granholm made it clear that the administration would be perfectly happy to move the legislation through Congress without a single Republican vote, much like Democrats did with Biden's $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package. You can watch the full interview here:

Tapper presses Granholm on new infrastructure bill | CNN International www.youtube.com