In other legislative news, a group of New York congressmembers wrote a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer urging them to keep the current funding for housing, transportation and immigration reform in the Build Back Better Act. “We can’t negotiate the reconciliation bill down to nothing,” tweeted Congressmember Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. The White House has conceded the $3.5 trillion package will have to be slashed in order to appease conservative Democratic Senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema. Pramila Jayapal, chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said Tuesday, instead of cutting the plan’s provisions, progressive lawmakers are open to reducing the time the programs are in place in order to lower the topline price tag. Jayapal and Senator Bernie Sanders also said Medicare expansion is not up for negotiation in the reconciliation package.