Bipartisan Senate Negotiators Say They Reach A Deal On Infrastructure After Hiccups

 

Bipartisan Senate negotiators said they have reached a deal on an infrastructure package, and a procedural vote on the measure is expected to take place Wednesday evening.

GOP Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio told reporters the group reached agreement on the major issues and were still working on legislative text. "We are prepared to move forward," Portman said after the Republicans working on the deal met with Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.

Sen. Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, who was leading talks for the 10 Democrats at the negotiating table, told reporters on Capitol Hill that "we are very excited to have a deal" and said that she had spoken with President Biden about it. Biden later told reporters he was "feeling confident" about the bill.

In an address Wednesday afternoon at a truck plant in Pennsylvania, Biden added that he was working with Democrats and Republicans on the deal because "while there's a lot we don't agree on, I believe that we should be able to work together on the few things we do agree on."

The announcement comes a week after a failed test vote on the deal, with Republicans saying Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., was moving too quickly. This time, Schumer said he is confident the Senate will approve moving forward.

The bill is expected to be around $1.2 trillion over eight years with roughly $550 billion in new spending, but the final details on key components were still being worked out.

https://www.npr.org/2021/07/28/1021768174/bipartisan-senate-negotiators-say-they-reach-a-deal-on-infrastructure-after-hicc