Democratic Washington Rep. Pramila Jayapal told reporters at the Capitol that President Joe Biden asked for a vote on both the Build Back Better Act and the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), but Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi only asked for a vote on the IIJA.
Biden “did not ask for a vote on the BIF [bipartisan infrastructure framework] today. The speaker did. He did not. He said he wants votes on both bills and he said that what we do on these two bills is going to be determinative for how the world sees us,” Jayapal said. She added that Biden’s “knowledge of all the pieces of the bills” was “really impressive” and that his speech was “compelling.”
Biden met with the entire House Democratic caucus on Thursday morning to unveil his new $1.75 trillion proposal for the Build Back Better Act, a social spending package that Democrats will pass through the budget reconciliation process. Following extensive negotiations between left-wing Democrats and more moderate members, the White House cut down an initial $3.5 trillion proposal from Independent Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders. (RELATED: Bernie Sanders Blames The Press For Not Talking About ‘Importance’ Of Reconciliation Package)
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The new proposal includes two years of federally-funded preschool for three and four-year olds, federally-funded child care, $555 billion in clean energy tax credits and subsidies, and tax credits associated with the Affordable Care Act.
Far-left House Democrats have been adamant that they will not vote for the IIJA, which passed the Senate in June in a 69-30 vote, unless the Build Back Better Act is brought up for a vote at the same time. Democratic leadership initially promised to bring the bills up for a vote at the end of September, before punting them to the end of October.