US Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell. COURTESY
US Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said Thursday he would “fight (Democrats) every step of the way” on Joe Biden’s $2 trillion infrastructure plan — a hurdle for the president’s party as they hold only a slim majority in the chamber. Biden’s proposal outlines investments in US infrastructure projects over eight years, which would include efforts to fight climate change while creating “millions of jobs.”
He has proposed financing the spending with a corporate tax increase to 28 percent, from the current 21 percent. The White House has said it wants to gather support for the plan from both Democratic and Republican members of Congress on some of the measures that are popular with voters across the political spectrum.
But one area unlikely to receive support from Republican McConnell is the tax increase, which he has characterized as a “Trojan horse.”
“I think that package that they’re putting together now as much as we would like to address infrastructure is not going to get support from our side,” McConnell said Thursday.
“I think… the last thing the economy needs right now is a big whooping tax increase on all the productive sections of our economy.”
“I’m going to fight them every step of the way, because I think this is the wrong prescription for America,” the Senate’s top Republican said during a press conference in his home state of Kentucky.
The Biden plan has “more money for electric cars than roads and bridges,” McConnell said. Democrats control both chambers of Congress, but their majorities are fragile, especially in the Senate, where there are 50 Democrats and 50 Republicans. Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris casts any tie-breaking votes.
Usually, 60 votes are required to pass any legislation into final law. But sometimes a simple majority can pass certain budget-related bills, which is how Congress passed the nearly $2 trillion coronavirus relief bill in March with only Democratic support.
They are hoping the model could be replicated with the infrastructure plan, but every Democrat would again have to vote together, including some moderates who could express reservations about an eventual bill.
In the House of Representatives, the Democratic majority is slightly more comfortable, and if there aren’t any major defections, Speaker Nancy Pelosi hopes to pass the Biden plan in early July.
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