Feb. 1, 2022: Biden’s bipartisan temptation

The center of legislative intrigue on Capitol Hill is bipartisan election reform. “That’s on a hot track right now,” Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) said Monday. But as talks heat up to overhaul the Electoral Count Act, President Joe Biden is out in the cold — a bystander out of sync with both parties in Congress. Administration officials are deeply engaged in a gamut of other bills snaking through Congress. Russia sanctions? “We are working very closely with Congress,” press secretary Jen Psaki said Monday. Trying to unstick Build Back Better? “There’s a lot of discussion among members, their staffs, committees” and “we’re engaged in those as well.” Ditto for the government funding bill that must be passed by Feb. 18, and the China competitiveness bill under negotiation. Subscribe to POLITICO Playbook. Raghu Manavalan is the Host of POLITICO's Playbook.Jenny Ament is the Senior Producer of POLITICO Audio.