Biden: Reconciliation is "strongest bill" to cut deficit and lower inflation

President Biden said Thursday that the proposed reconciliation package would lower the deficit and reduce inflation, even if it is "far from perfect."

Driving the news: "My message to Congress is this: This is the strongest bill you can pass to lower inflation, cut the deficit, reduce health care costs, tackle the climate crisis ... all the time while reducing the burdens facing working class and middle class families," Biden said Thursday.

• "This bill is far from perfect. It’s a compromise, but that’s often how progress is made, by compromises," Biden said. He urged Congress to pass the package.
• "Pass it. Pass it for the American people. Pass it for America."

The big picture: Biden's speech comes after Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) announced Wednesday his plan to support the deficit package, a stark reversal for the senator who has been blocking key portions of Biden's agenda, Axios' Hans Nichols reports.

• "I want to thank leader Schumer and Senator Manchin for the extraordinary effort that it took to reach this result," Biden said Thursday.

What he's saying: Biden also said that the package would be a "a big deal" if it passes and that it would be "the most significant legislation in history to tackle the climate crisis."

• He also said that while the package does not mirror his Build Back Better agenda exactly, it's similar.
• "Some of you will see a lot of similarities between the beginning of Build Back Better initiative," he said. "It's not all of it, but we've moved a long way."

Go deeper... Manchin announces support for climate, tax, health care deal