House Democratic leaders on Friday said they would take up both a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill and a far-reaching, multitrillion-dollar social safety net plan next week, as they worked feverishly to bridge deep divisions within their ranks that are holding up President Biden’s top two domestic priorities.
The compromise was made by Speaker Nancy Pelosi, California, to allow moderates to vote on the $3.5 billion budget plan.
Progressives say they won’t support the bill until Congress approves a $3.5 trillion plan for massive new investments in education and child care. In an effort to avoid a liberal revolt, the plan to move forward with both was to salvage both measures.
On the House floor, Representative Steny of Maryland, the majority leader, stated that the chamber will begin to consider the infrastructure bill on Monday and that a floor vote on the second package would be possible later in the week.
Ms. Pelosi is able to lose only three votes in a tightly divided Congress for her domestic policy plan. This plan is being pushed through by Democrats using reconciliation, a fast-track budget process that shields it from a Senate filing. House Republicans have asked their members to vote against the $1 trillion infrastructure package. A few defections could lead to the bill’s sinking.
“We’re at a stalemate at the moment, and we’re going to have to get these two pieces of legislation passed,” In remarks made at the White House, Mr. Biden stated. “Both need to be passed.”
The push to demonstrate progress on Mr. Biden’s agenda came as lawmakers grapple with how to structure the proposal and pacify moderates who want to see the scope of the reconciliation package narrow. Between Democrats in both chambers, it is still difficult to decide which programs should be kept and which ones to drop.
“We’ve been waiting for weeks for people to tell us what they’re not going to vote for,” On Friday, Representative Pramila Jayapal, Washington state’s chairwoman, spoke out to reporters.
It also creates a frenetic stretch right days before the Oct. 1 deadline for government funding. Senate Republicans are expected to block a stopgap spending package needed to stave off a shutdown because it contains legislation that would lift the limit on the federal government’s ability to borrow, a move Congress must make in the coming weeks to avert a first-ever default on its obligations. It is likely that Monday’s procedural vote will fail.
“It will be our intention to deal with whatever bill the Senate sent back to us, if in fact they do not take our bill,” Mr. Hoyer stated. “We believe that it is absolutely essential not to shut down government.”
In a letter to her colleagues on Friday, Ms. Pelosi said that “as negotiations continue, there may be changes” to the reconciliation legislation. The House Budget Committee is expected to advance the $3.5 trillion package, currently a 2,465-page behemoth, in a virtual meeting on Saturday.
It was not clear if moderates would support a vote regarding the reconciliation package. The moderates are reluctantly to participate in the vote until it is clear what legislation can pass the Senate. However, the Senate has yet not publicly released the legislation. It is not clear if private, bi-partisan negotiations have resulted in a concrete agreement on the most difficult issues.
“There would be a lot of work that would have to be done between now and then to have a reconciliation bill that meets some of the requirements that she has agreed to,” Representative Stephanie Murphy from Florida, a key moderate spoke to reporters at Capitol Hill. “But I’m sure we’re all dedicated to working really hard to see if we can make something like that happen.”