Republican Ohio Sen. Rob Portman warned Sunday that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi could potentially blow up the bipartisan infrastructure deal.
Portman told “This Week” anchor George Stephanopoulos that Pelosi’s insistence on tying the proposed reconciliation package to any bipartisan infrastructure deal could leave Republicans with the impression that negotiations were in bad faith. (RELATED: Democrats Compare Republicans To Confederates And Jim Crow, Then Expect The GOP To Work With Them)
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Portman addressed the issue in part because Pelosi had preceded him on the show and had doubled down on her promise to only take up a bipartisan infrastructure package if the reconciliation package was in the offing.
“What she has said is counter to what President Biden has committed to and what the Senate is doing which is a two-track process,” Portman began, adding, “the infrastructure bill has nothing to do with the reckless tax and spend extravaganza she’s talking about in terms of reconciliation.”
Portman made it clear that he was not happy with Pelosi’s comments and he did not believe it to be consistent with what Republicans were hearing from the White House.
“Does that mean we’ll end up with nothing?” Stephanopoulos asked.
“If she has her way, we could,” Portman replied. “I know the bipartisan infrastructure package is very popular among the American people and in the United States Congress because it makes sense. We need it badly.”
Portman went on to detail some of the issues the package was designed to address, noting that roads and bridges across the nation needed work and that was something all Americans could agree was important.
“It’s the way we ought to be doing things in Washington,” Portman concluded, stressing once again the importance of bipartisan cooperation.
“Do you have a deal?” Stephanopoulos asked, and Portman said he believed they were 90% in agreement.