The fate of the $1.2 trillion infrastructure package passed by the Senate on Tuesday is far from certain in the House, where far-left and centrist Democrats are battling over what comes next.
Minutes after the Senate passed the legislation, the Congressional Progressive Caucus wrote House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer that a majority of its 95 House members said in a survey they will not vote for the infrastructure plan unless the Senate also passes the Democrats’ bigger $3.5 trillion package chock full of liberal priorities.
With Democrats holding only a 220-212 advantage in the House and with few Republicans expected to support the bipartisan package, the progressive group could stall its passage.
In their letter, the progressive Democrats said they would not support the infrastructure bill if it is brought up alone. The survey results “affirm the urgency of ensuring that the Senate’s desire to pass a narrower bipartisan infrastructure agreement does not come at the expense of the full scope investments our communities need, want, and deserve,” wrote the group’s chairwoman, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, Washington Democrat. “Our caucus is clear: the bipartisan bill will only be passed if a package of social, human, and climate infrastructure — reflecting long-standing Democratic priorities — is passed simultaneously.”
The demand is in line with Mrs. Pelosi’s position that the House will pass the bipartisan measure only in tandem with the Democrats’ “human infrastructure” package, which calls for the creation of a number of new subsidies, expansions of Medicare and Medicaid, and the granting of citizenship to people brought illegally to the U.S. as children, among other measures.
However, the prospects for the $3.5 trillion package are iffy in the evenly divided Senate. Democrats plan to use budget reconciliation, which allows spending bills to bypass the Senate filibuster and pass on a simple majority vote. But any legislation would need the support of all 50 of the Senate’s Democrats, as no Republicans are expected to support the legislation. At least one centrist Democrat, Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, has said she will not support such an expensive spending bill.
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Mrs. Pelosi, meanwhile, is facing a push from moderates to keep the two proposals separate. The Blue Dog Coalition, made up of 19 fiscally conservative Democrats, demanded that the House speaker immediately bring up the infrastructure bill for a vote without tying it to the $3.5 billion package, which will not be taken up by the Senate until after Congress returns from its break in September. Senate Democrats are expected Tuesday to pass a resolution in a party-line vote that will begin the process of committees writing the “human infrastructure” legislation.
“Now that the Senate has done its job, we reiterate our call for House leadership to follow suit and bring the bipartisan infrastructure legislation to the House floor for a vote as a standalone bill as quickly as possible,” wrote the group’s co-chairs, Reps. Tom O’Halleran of Arizona, Ed Case of Hawaii, Stephanie Murphy of Florida, Abigail Spanberger of Virginia and Kurt Schrader of Oregon.
“The co-chairs of the Blue Dog Coalition remain opposed to any effort to unnecessarily delay consideration of these critical infrastructure investments, which will create good-paying jobs, keep American businesses competitive and grow our nation’s economy. The House should move now to deliver this legislation to President Biden’s desk for his signature and give the American people the results they need and deserve.”
The demand echoed that of Rep. Josh Gotteheimer of New Jersey and six other centrist Democrats on Monday.
• Kery Murakami can be reached at kmurakami@washingtontimes.com.
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