House moderates may oppose budget without infrastructure vote

[brooklynite]

Source: Roll Call

Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s plan to link the Senate’s $550 billion bipartisan infrastructure plan to a $3.5 trillion budget reconciliation package is starting to backfire, as moderate Democrats warn they may not vote for a budget resolution needed to begin the reconciliation process unless it’s paired with a vote on the Senate bill.

Rep. Ed Case said in an interview Friday that he wouldn’t be able to vote for the budget resolution without Pelosi also committing to holding a vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill. The Senate is planning to vote on both measures in the next week or two.

“I have many concerns with a proposed $3.5 trillion budget resolution,” the Hawaii Democrat said. “Those are separate concerns from the linkage to the infrastructure bill. But for the purposes that we’re talking about here, I do not support the speaker’s insistence that this bill would not pass without the budget resolution, so I hope she changes her mind because I can’t — I don’t support the direction that she has taken.”

Case said he’s “not at all alone” in his thinking, which interviews with other members confirmed.

Read more: https://www.rollcall.com/2021/08/02/house-moderates-may-oppose-budget-without-infrastructure-vote/

[OneCrazyDiamond]

1. +1

I agree with Speaker Pelosi. The 2 bills should be tied together or nothing.

[jalan48]

2. Who didn't see this coming? We may wind up with the $1 trillion package currently on the

table.

[Deminpenn]

3. Sausage making isn't pretty

This is just everyone jockeying for position.

[jalan48]

4. Yep, it would be ironic if the final package is closer to the Republican's original proposal than

the Democrat's $2 to $3.5 trillion wish.

[BradAllison]

6. That's how it always is....

But we're "in control".

[Mawspam2]

5. I never liked this two-track strategy.

It should have been all or nothing in one reconciliation bill. We should have made every Republican vote against it. If Manchin, Case or anyone else sinks $6T, come back with a smaller package they will vote for. Never give Republicans any credit for getting this done.

They had four years and they laughed calling every week infrastructure week and never lifting a finger to actually do the work. We're still waiting for them to introduce the newer/better/cheaper replacement to Obamacare. TFG was always promising to roll it out "in two weeks". It never came. (Remember that Obamacare was supposed to be a slur to tank it until we owned it and said 'Yes, we can'.)

We need to do the same with infrastructure!

[BlueIdaho]

7. It's all sausage making

What matters is creating the maximum benefit for the American people. Grandstanding is not helpful right now.