House Set To Vote On Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill In Major Test For Democrats

The House of Representatives is set to vote Thursday on the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill that the Senate passed in August. The vote, originally scheduled Monday, was pushed back to negotiate with the centrist Democrats who threatened to not vote for President Joe Biden’s sweeping Build Back Better plan.

Along with this bipartisan infrastructure bill, Democrats are also trying to work on the $3.5 trillion plan to greatly enhance social and environmental programs.

“This week is a week of opportunity, as we work to keep the government open, conclude negotiations on the Build Back Better Act and advance the Bipartisan Infrastructure Framework,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-California) wrote in a statement Sunday.

Last week, the House passed a bill that would both prevent a government shutdown and suspend the debt cap for another year, though it will face another challenge in the Senate. To prevent a shutdown and default, which could bring severe damage to the economy if it happens, Congress must pass the bill by the end of this month.

Senate Republicans are currently opposing the Democrats’ effort to raise the debt limit.

“We do not have divided government. Democrats do not need our help,” Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Kentucky) said in a statement last week. “They have every tool to address the debt limit on their own: the same party-line process they used to ram through inflationary spending in March and already plan to use again this fall.”

The spending bill, the $3.5 trillion plan that includes the core of Biden’s agenda, would make massive investments in the social and climate policy. Republicans want the debt limit added to the sweeping bill, which Democrats plan to pay off through raising taxes on corporations and the rich.

According to the new poll conducted by Morning Consult, more than half of voters have said they support the bipartisan infrastructure bill.

Article by Dongyoon Shin