Vulnerable Democrats won't say if they support Manchin bill, raising taxes during recession

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Will Inflation Reduction Act actually reduce inflation?

Foundation for Economic Education correspondent Brad Polumbo discusses Senator Joe Manchin's support for the Inflation Reduction Act on 'Fox News Live.'

Vulnerable House Democrats will not say if they support the Manchin-Schumer Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, or if it is wise to raise billions in new taxes during an economic recession.

The nonpartisan Joint Committee on Taxation (JCT) revealed in an analysis last week that the Manchin bill, which would spend $433 billion on climate change initiatives, would increase taxes by billions of dollars, including on middle-class earners.

According to the JCT, Americans making less than $200K per year would have their taxes increased by $16.7 billion. For taxpayers earning between $200,000 and $500,000, the bill would increase taxes by $14.1 billion.

The bill was introduced just days after the gross domestic product (GDP) contracted for a second consecutive quarter from April-June, signaling the economy had entered into a recession. 

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Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., says the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 will "cut inflation taxes," but economic experts say otherwise. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

Fox News Digital reached out to the offices of 20 of the most vulnerable Democratic incumbents to see if they would support the Manchin bill and to ask if it is wise to raise taxes during a recession. 

None of the Democratic Members listed provided a response:

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Rep. Sharice Davids, D-Kan., Rep. Jared Golden, D-Maine, Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Mich., Rep. Angie Craig, D-Minn., Rep. Annie Kuster, D-N.H., Rep. Chris Pappas, D-N.H., Rep. Dina Titus, D-Nev., Rep. Susie Lee, D-Nev., Rep. Steve Horsford, D-Nev., Rep. Marcy Kaptur, D-Ohio, Rep. Matt Cartwright, D-Pa., Rep. Elaine Luria, D-Va., Rep. Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., Rep. Kim Schrier, D-Wash., Rep. Cindy Axne, D-Iowa, Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Texas, Rep. Susan Wild, D-Pa., Rep. Tom Malinowski, D-N.J., Rep. Tom O’Halleran, D-Ariz

Democrat Chuck Schumer is the Senate Majority Leader.

In a press release Wednesday, Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., said that, "this bill will cut the inflation taxes Americans are paying, lower the cost of health insurance and prescription drugs, and ensure our country invests in the energy security and climate change solutions we need to remain a global superpower through innovation rather than elimination."

"The mislabeled ‘Inflation Reduction Act’ will do nothing to bring the economy out of stagnation and recession, but it will raise billions of dollars in taxes on Americans making less than $400,000," said U.S. Senate Finance Committee Ranking Member Mike Crapo, R-Idaho.

The White House has not yet declared the economy is in a recession, despite the GDP falling for two consecutive quarters. (Photographer: Shawn Thew/EPA/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

The revelation that the Manchin bill, which received the endorsement of President Biden, would raise taxes, comes after Biden made a 2021 pledge that no American worker making under $400k a year would pay "a single penny" in new taxes.

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"I keep hearing in the press ‘Biden’s going to raise your taxes’ – anybody making less than $400,000 a year will not pay a single penny in taxes," Biden said.

The Senate is expected to take up the Manchin bill for a vote this week. 

Fox Business' Megan Henney contributed to this report.