| Senate Democrats return to Washington today facing a self-imposed deadline to enact the boldest portion of President Biden’s domestic agenda amid the make-or-break objections of West Virginia centrist Democrat Joe Manchin. Democratic leaders have set a soft Wednesday deadline for Senate committees to complete drafting their portions of the sweeping $3.5 trillion reconciliation package. However, questions are stacking up today about its size and scope, and the Senate rules tied to the mammoth social policy legislation (The Hill). Manchin reaffirmed in multiple Sunday show appearances that he opposes spending another $3.5 trillion, but may be open to roughly half as much. His explanations vary, but he argues the pending measure is too big, is moving too fast and would be tough to sell to his constituents. He maintains he’s not the only Senate Democrat who would vote against the measure. Manchin reprised the same “flawed and rushed” arguments he used in 2017 when he balked at a GOP tax bill signed by former President Trump. “We don't have the need to rush into this and get it done within one week because there's some deadline we're meeting or someone's going to fall through the cracks,” Manchin told NBC's “Meet the Press.” “I want to make sure that children are getting taken care of, that people are basically having an opportunity to go back to work. We have 11 million jobs that we haven't filled, 8 million people still unemployed. Something's not matching up there” (The Hill). “I have been giving. I could say that I’m against this and that and everything. I’m for an awful lot of the things. I’m for also putting guardrails on,” Manchin added. Alexander Bolton, The Hill: Democrats see $3.5 trillion spending goal is slipping away. The Washington Post: Democrats sorting through painful sacrifices as social bill enters final stretch. The Hill: This week: Democrats kick off chaotic fall with Biden's agenda at stake. With Democrats needing unanimity in the upper chamber to pass the blueprint, Manchin’s stance would scuttle the party’s planned timeline to vote on the bill to tee up a vote in the House by Sept. 27, the date by which Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) promised to hold a vote on the bipartisan $1 trillion infrastructure measure. What it will take to bring Manchin on board with a bill of any kind remains unclear. When pressed on CNN’s “State of the Union,” he declined to lay out what his ceiling is on a price tag, instead floating a bill in the $1 trillion to $1.5 trillion range (CNN). However, the West Virginia centrist has not described the proposed policies and programs he would leave out or shrink. He says he worries about the rising national debt, inflation and potential U.S. needs abroad. As Manchin spoke, Democrats began circulating a new tax plan that would raise nearly $3 trillion in new taxes and revenue, with much of it coming from wealthy Americans and corporations. Included in the blueprint are provisions that would increase the top tax rate on those earning more than $435,000 from 37 percent to 39.6 percent and raise the corporate tax rate from 21 percent to 26.5 percent for larger businesses and firms (The Washington Post). Axios: Inside Democrats' tax hike menu. The Wall Street Journal: Democrats grapple with limits of anti-poverty and climate bill. Sunday shows: Manchin says he won't vote for a $3.5 trillion bill. Manchin’s latest remarks upset Senate Budget Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who has in recent days drawn a red line of his own, saying that he will not back any bill that falls below the $3.5 trillion total. Sanders originally envisioned a measure worth $6 trillion over a decade but agreed with Democrats to reduce his ideas by nearly half. It’s worth noting that Manchin (along with Arizona Sen. Kyrsten Sinema) voted to advance the $3.5 trillion budget resolution last month to open the doors to the massive bill. “No, it's absolutely not acceptable to me. I don't think it's acceptable to the president, to the American people or to the overwhelming majority of the people in the Democratic caucus,” Sanders told “State of the Union.” “This is a consequential bill. It is hard to put a bill like this together. At the end of the day, I believe we will,” Sanders continued (The Hill). Axios: Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) warns he may vote against the $3.5 trillion budget over housing assistance. The Hill: Manchin responds to Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s (D-N.Y.) tweet: “Continue to divide, divide, divide.” 
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