Breyer retirement latest complication for Biden spending bill

Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer’s plans to retire have thrown another curveball into the winding efforts to get the cornerstone of President Biden’s agenda passed in what could be the final months Democrats have full control of Congress.

Appointing Breyer’s replacement to the court is an undeniable win for Biden and the Democrats, some of whom had pleaded for the 83-year-old justice to step down and make way for a younger judge to cement the liberal wing of the bench.

But the timing of the announcement, nine months before the midterm elections, could make it more difficult for Biden and Democratic leaders to negotiate and get his signature climate and social spending proposal, Build Back Better, passed and signed into law.

“At some point, that nomination process is going to consume all of the oxygen on Capitol Hill in the Senate,” said Jim Manley, a former aide to the late Sen. Harry Reid (D-Nev.). “It doesn’t mean Build Back Better is done, but it’s just another problem that has to be dealt with.”

Biden said he plans to announce his nominee by the end of February, and Democratic aides indicated that Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.) hopes to follow a confirmation timeline close to that of Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett, who was confirmed 30 days after she was nominated.