Biden’s infrastructure plan originally called for over $2 trillion dollars in spending, much of which was carved out for progressive pet projects and issues. This week a bipartisan group came to an agreement shaving off a little more than a trillion dollars from this plan. Of course, billions of dollars of the social funding and community projects will come from corporate tax hikes. Of course, it sounds good, but ultimately those corporate tax hikes are passed on to the consumer.
After the bill that was passed for pandemic relief, which cost the American people over $1.9 trillion dollars, some in the Senate wanted to be more conservative in spending. The term infrastructure has become something of a contentious topic, with the representatives arguing along party lines to determine what should be included. You’ll remember Kirsten Gillibrand stating, “Paid leave is infrastructure. Child care is infrastructure. Caregiving is infrastructure.” While Senator Lindsey Graham calls it GOP suicide, using some fairly harsh language today to describe his fellow Republicans
Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) has said he will not support President Joe Biden‘s infrastructure bill, despite a bipartisan agreement that was announced at the White House on Thursday.
Politico’s “Playbook” newsletter reported on Friday morning that Graham was not backing the deal because the small infrastructure bill is set to be linked to a larger reconciliation bill.
“If he’s gonna tie them together, he can forget it!” Graham. “I’m not doing that. That’s extortion! I’m not going to do that. The Dems are being told you can’t get your bipartisan work product passed unless you sign on to what the left wants, and I’m not playing that game.”
What we do know is that the 60 votes have been reached and this bill will move forward. What we don’t know is what comes next. With the spending that Biden’s Administration initially wanted in the first proposed bill, one would expect to see those progressive agendas surface again. Speaker Pelosi towing the party line told the Capitol Press Corps that nothing gets passed in the house without reconciliation:
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said at a press conference Thursday that she will block a bipartisan bill if the Senate doesn’t first pass a second and more contentious bill packed with tax hikes and social spending via budget reconciliation rules that allow for a simple majority in the Senate.
“Let me be really clear on this: We will not take up a bill in the House until the Senate passes the bipartisan bill and a reconciliation bill. If there is no bipartisan bill, then we’ll just go when the Senate passes a reconciliation bill,” Pelosi said at a press conference.
We will keep you updated on this as more information on votes and amendments become available.
