McConnell: Senate highway vote ‘an important first step’

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said a vote to begin debate on a massive highway bill he is pitching is “an important first step” toward solving a transportation funding shortfall that has bedeviled Congress for a decade. 

“There are lot of tired cliches about not giving up after an initial set back,” McConnell said, referencing a failed test vote on Tuesday that placed the Senate’s ability to pass a long-term highway bill in doubt. 

“I won’t subject our colleagues to any of those this morning, but I will say that last night’s vote represents an important first step toward passing a multi-year, bipartisan highway bill. It’s the first step on much longer road, but in my view it’s a worthwhile one.” 

GOP leaders are scrambling to meet a July 31 deadline for new highway funding.

McConnell won support from Democrats by scrapping a proposal to pay for some of the funding with $2.3 billion obtained by stopping the payment of Social Security benefits to people with felony warrants. That led to a successful vote to proceed with debate on the highway bill.

The controversial Social Security proposal was part of an approximately $47 billion package of offsets negotiated by Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-Calif.) and McConnell.

“The bill still needs some fixing but … it was a question of whether or not we even have a bill to fix,” Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.) said after the procedural vote Wednesday. 

McConnell expressed confidence on Thursday in his ability to continue to win support in the Senate.

“This bipartisan bill would fund our roads, highways and bridges for longer than any transportation bill considered by Congress in a decade,” he said. “And the highway proposal will do so without increasing taxes or adding to the deficit, and that’s no small achievement.” 

He said he would he would continue to work with Democrats to assuage their concerns about the funding mechanism for the transportation funding. 

“I hope we’ll continue to work together to finally deliver a fiscally responsible long-term highway bill for the American people,” McConnell said. 

The Department of Transportation has warned that it will have to cut back on payments to state and local governments unless Congress reaches an agreement to replenish its Highway Trust Fund by the end of the month. 

-Alexander Bolton contributed to this report.