More On: The House
The House passes a $1 trillion infrastructure bill after a day of discussions, and votes to move forward with a larger bill
House moderates demanded a cost assessment from the Congressional Budget Office.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi pushed through two major votes on the Democratic agenda late Friday: the president's $1.75 trillion "Build Back Better" social spending and climate policy package and a second $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure plan.
The final vote on the infrastructure proposal, which had previously been approved by the Senate, was 228-206, with 13 Republicans joining Democrats and six Democrats voting no. The bill will now be delivered to Vice President Joe Biden for his signature. After the Senate passed the law, it took 87 days for the House to approve the spending, which included two presidential trips to the Capitol and hundreds of discussions between the White House and members of Congress.
Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Ayanna Pressley, Cori Bush, Rashida Tlaib, and Jamaal Bowman were among the six Democrats who voted against the infrastructure bill.
Democratic squabbling continued on Friday, with Democratic moderates demanding that Pelosi wait for a cost estimate on the broader plan from the neutral Congressional Budget Office before proceeding.
Reps. Kathleen Rice (D-NY), Ed Case (D-Hawaii), Josh Gottheimer (D-N.J.), Stephanie Murphy (D-Fla.), and Kurt Schrader (D-Ore.) issued a statement late Friday saying they would support the "Build Back Better" vote if it is reviewed by Nov. 15 and the CBO scores stay consistent.
Progressives, who had their own concerns about the proposals, such as the inclusion of paid family leave, agreed to support the vote late Friday.
"Tonight, members of the Progressive Caucus and our colleagues in the Democratic Caucus reached an agreement to advance both pieces of President Biden’s legislative agenda," Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Rep. Pramila Jayapal said in a statement just prior to the vote.
Just after midnight in Washington, the House voted to end debate on the $1.75 trillion plan, 221 to 213, directly down party lines.
Late Friday afternoon, Pelosi announced the House would vote Friday on the already Senate-passed bipartisan infrastructure plan and then take a procedural vote on moving forward with the "Build Back Better" legislation -- but not a final vote -- a significant concession.
"We had hoped to be able to bring both bills to the floor today. Some members want more clarification or validation of numbers that have been put forth. It's top line, that it is fully paid for. And we honor that request," Pelosi said. "So today, we hope to pass the BIF and also the rule on Build Back Better with the idea that before Thanksgiving -- it should take them another week or so -- to get the numbers they are requesting."
So, Democratic leaders imposed yet deadline after missing many others -- to pass the "Build Back Better" legislation by the middle of the month, with Pelosi calling its hoped-for passage a "Thanksgiving gift for the American people."
The speaker, renowned for her vote-counting prowess and who has famously said she doesn't call a vote unless she know she has enough to win, was asked by a reporter, "Do you ... have 218 votes to pass it?' Pelosi answered, "We'll see, won’t we?"
"I have a speaker's secret whip count. I don't tell anybody. Not even you my dear good friends, but I have a pretty good feeling," she said.
Even so, it wasn't clear whether progressive Democrats would go along with Pelosi's plan to vote Friday on the bipartisan infrastructure bill.
For months, they have threatened to vote against and defeat it -- unless at the same time they got a vote on final passage of the larger social spending package.
Pelosi had addressed some of their concerns by adding back in four weeks of paid family and medical leave over the objections of West Virginia Democrat Joe Manchin, whose vote is key to getting the measure passed in the Senate.
In a sign of the fast-changing developments and disarray, minutes after Pelosi announced there would be a vote on the bipartisan infrastructure package Friday, progressives gathered behind closed doors.
In the middle of their meeting, Biden called Jayapal, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
She left in a hurry, racing to nearby elevators to take the call from the president.
ABC News Congressional Correspondent Rachel Scott reported she was told roughly 20 progressives were ready to vote against the bipartisan infrastructure bill unless there’s a vote on the larger social spending bill, too.
The roadblocks thrown up by House Democrats continued despite Biden urging then to act -- with the party facing new pressure to deliver after disappointing election results on Tuesday.
"I'm asking every House Member, Member of the House of Representatives to vote yes on both these bills right now. Send the infrastructure bill to my desk. Send the Build Back Better bill to the Senate," Biden send in his morning message to lawmakers. "Let's, let's build on incredible economic progress. Build on what we've already done, because this will be such a boost when it occurs. Let's show the world that American democracy can deliver and propel our economy forward. Let's get this done."
He did not answer reporter questions, but promised to come back to answer them when the bills pass.
But hours after he spoke, when or if that would happen remained in doubt.
