Daily US Times: President Joe Biden has insisted his $1tn infrastructure bill will eventually be passed by Congress amid an impasse in his own party.
After a surprise visit to Congress on Friday, he said: “It doesn’t matter whether it’s in six minutes, six days, or six weeks, we’re going to get it done.”
Some legislators of Mr. Biden’s own party refuse to back the plan until a separate $3.5tn welfare and climate change bill is voted in.
But centrist politicians in the Democratic party want to spend less on those issues.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a top Democrat, admitted on Friday evening that “more time is needed” to find a compromise.
Thursday’s vote on the infrastructure bill was postponed and it was not clear when another attempt to hold a vote would be made.
On Friday, the president’s visit to Capitol Hill saw him meet privately with House Democrats in a bid to break the deadlock.
Mr Biden had sought to encourage compromise between the factions, according to media reports.
Reuters quoted a source as saying President Biden had suggested scaling back the welfare and climate bill to about $2 trillion, saying “even a smaller bill can make historic investments”.
The bipartisan $1tn public works bill, which would apply to broadband, water systems, routine transportation and other projects, enjoys wide support – but liberal (or progressive) Democrats are linking its passage to their more ambitious welfare and climate change bill.
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