On Saturday, United States (US) President Joe Biden told reporters that he would “work like hell” to pass the multi-trillion dollar infrastructure and social spending bills within the next month.
The bills, proposed earlier this year, form an integral part of Biden’s larger Build Back Better plan. However, the bills have faced significant opposition from the Conservatives present in Congress and from within the Democratic party’s left-leaning sections.
The opponents have largely attributed their scepticism to the “ambitiousness” of Biden’s twin fold legislative agenda, which amounts to $4.5 trillion. The plan comprises a $1 trillion package for physical infrastructure (roads, bridges, and pipes) and a $3.5 trillion package encompassing social investments (childcare, healthcare, and housing).
The left-leaning Democrats demand that the $3.5 trillion social spending bill be passed before the infrastructure bill to bolster societal development and fight climate change more effectively.
Bernie Sanders, a leading Liberal and former Senator, has expressed apprehension over Biden’s priorities. “There can be no infrastructure bill without a strong reconciliation bill. Without a strong reconciliation bill, there will be no serious effort to cut carbon emissions and transform our energy system away from fossil fuel,” he tweeted on Friday.
This vast opposition has pushed the two bills to the point of stagnation. Consequently, Biden has begun campaigning rigorously for the implementation of the bills. Al Jazeera reported that the President visited the Capitol on Friday to “end the fight between moderates and left-leaning progressives in the Democratic Party that has threatened the two bills” while acknowledging that he needs to “do more” to garner support for the bills. “Everybody’s frustrated. It’s part of being in government, being frustrated,” he said.
Furthermore, Biden mentioned that he will now travel across the nation to inform the public about why the two bills are vital and “designed to make life easier for common Americans.” He also refuted the criticism that the bills are too “ambitious,” saying, “There’s nothing in any of these pieces of legislation that’s radical, that is unreasonable, I’m going to try to sell what I think the people, the American people, will buy.”
Biden hoped the Senate Republicans would not block the bills any further. “That [blocking the bills] would be unconscionable,” he said.
On Sunday, US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters: “Our goal is to get it done in the next month, both bills, get them passed. We need unity in both our caucuses in the House and Senate to get both done. If we get it done in the next 30 days, I think it will be a great help to everybody in the country.”
At the same time, US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who has been by Biden’s side through this process, said the infrastructure bill could not wait for the social spending bill as some left-leaning Democrats prefer. She also shifted the deadline for the passing of the $1 trillion infrastructure bill to October 31. “More time was needed to reach our goal of passing both bills, which we will,” she said in a letter to the House Democrats on Saturday.
As of now, it is unclear as to when the two bills will be finally voted on, but Biden’s approach towards promoting them has undoubtedly taken a more convincing route. “It doesn’t matter whether it’s in six minutes, six days, or six weeks, we’re going to get it done,” the President declared after his Capitol visit.
Biden Says He Will ‘Work Like Hell’ To Pass Infrastructure and Emergency Spending Bills
United States President Joe Biden told reporters on Saturday that he will “work like hell” and tackle large-scale opposition to pass the infrastructure bill and multi-trillion dollar spending bill.
October 4, 2021
President Biden visited the Capitol on Friday to try to end a fight between moderates and left-leaning progressives in his Democratic Party, Oct. 2, 2021. SOURCE: TOM BRENNER/REUTERS