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I'd say they are both power grabs in their own way. I'd actually bet that doing something like admitting PR and D.C. to add 4 blue senate votes (absent GOP re-alignment) would have a larger and more immediate effect than moving the court to 6-5 rather than 6-3.
That said, they might just undo themselves on their own by getting Roe and the ACA trashed. Can't really savor that in light of the inevitable body count.
Technically speaking you could admit a thousand additional blue states and it wouldn't make a difference since the calculus is ultimately the same: the courts would strike down every Democratic agenda. But again your point is moot because no adding of court seats = no adding additional states. No matter what you try to do, the court packing McConnell has done means you don't get anything.
I also don't view the passing of HR1 as a power grab because both parties are exposed to the same challenge: convincing the American public of the superiority of their ideas. Remember, as it stands the GOP isn't required to do that because they can depend on cheating to hold power. HR1 ends that.
To your last point, waiting for the courts to trash prized democratic (small d) policies means losing a year to two years of just a two year Democratic (large D) majority. You have to assume, for the sake of caution, that Democrats have two years of Congressional majority and that Trump is sworn into office in 2025 if HR1 isn't passed.
My path to achieving HR1, which I see as the critical salvation of our democracy, is adding court seats. I've yet to hear of an alternate let alone superior path to achieving this.