Democrats could pass infrastructure, spending bills by Tuesday
House Democrats are looking to pass both the social spending and bipartisan infrastructure bills as early as Tuesday, a leadership aide told The Hill.
Axios first reported on the timeline for two critical pieces of legislation that are part of President Biden’s domestic agenda, citing two sources familiar.
An aide for Democratic leadership told Axios that committees were notified by House leaders that they had to finish any changes on the spending bill by Sunday and that the House Rules Committee could meet as soon as Monday to mark it up.
An aide told The Hill that committees have until Sunday to make revisions to the social spending bill’s text and that both bills could be voted on as early as Tuesday, though the aide noted that the schedule was “not set in stone yet.”
“Pens down Sunday for committees to make any changes for revised text. Then Rules would meet as soon as Monday, floor as soon as Tuesday. Schedule not set in stone yet,” the aide said.
The projected deadline comes after progressives scored another win earlier this week to delay a vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and her leadership team had sought to vote on bipartisan legislation — which would include funding for “traditional” infrastructure such as roads and bridges — Thursday before President Biden headed to Rome. However, the bill was ultimately not brought to the House floor for a vote after progressives said they would not vote for the bipartisan bill without assurance of a social spending package.
Democrats were also particularly eager to vote on the bill given that Virginia’s gubernatorial race is only days away, and recent polls have demonstrated it will be a tight race.
A Fox News poll released on Thursday showed that Republican candidate Glenn Youngkin was up 8 points among likely voters. Among registered voters, meanwhile, the poll showed the candidates separated by 1 point.
A Washington Post-Schar School poll released the following day showed a closer race, with McAuliffe leading Youngkin by 1 point among likely voters.
Democrats are seeking to overcome an impasse on their social spending bill. A new framework released by the Biden administration on Thursday cut the total cost of the bill back to $1.75 trillion, far below the proposed $3.5 trillion price tag.
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), one of two key holdouts on the spending bill, said that he supported the $1.75 trillion figure, but it is unclear if he supports the framework of the deal itself.
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