Senate Democrats advance $3.5 trillion spending package in party-line vote without Republicans

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Budget Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders meeting with Budget Committee Democrats at the Capitol.

Samuel Corum/Getty Images

• Democrats approved the $3.5 trillion budget blueprint early Wednesday morning.
• The vote was 50-49 along party lines.
• The budget blueprint now goes to the House, but Biden may struggle keeping Democrats in lock-step.
• See more stories on Insider's business page.

Senate Democrats advanced the $3.5 trillion budget blueprint early on Wednesday, setting the stage for what could be a historic level of spending to expand the social safety net, a key goal of President Joe Biden.

The vote was 50-49 along party lines, capping a so-called "vote-a-rama" that saw a barrage of non-binding amendment votes. The session lasted more than 14 hours, CNBC reported. GOP Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota was absent for the vote, The New York Times reported.

Every Senate Democrat voted in favor of the plan over unanimous Republican opposition.

"The American people want a government which represents all of us, and not just the few," Senate Budget Committee chair Bernie Sanders said on Tuesday. "This legislation is going to ask the wealthy and the powerful to start paying their fair share of taxes so that we can address the needs of working families, the elderly, the children, the sick and the poor."

The spending plan would expand Medicare so it provides dental, vision, and hearing coverage. It would also set up a national paid family and medical leave program, tuition-free community college, a child allowance, and initiatives to combat the climate crisis. It would be funded with tax hikes on the richest Americans and multinational companies.

The resolution was adopted on the heels of the Senate approving a $1 trillion infrastructure bill. Now, a dozen committees will begin drafting formal reconciliation legislation with a September 15 deadline. That procedure allows the passage of certain bills with a simple majority of 51 votes, instead of the 60 typically required in the Senate.

But it sets up what may be a perilous legislative stretch for Democrats as they assemble the massive plan. Many Democrats view the spending as historic, reflecting a decade of pent-up Democratic goals they struggled to achieve under President Barack Obama.

They're attempting to command their narrow Senate and House majorities and deliver on a broad range of economic programs to level the playing field for middle-class Americans. Biden must keep Democrats in lock-step, given House Democrats can only afford three defections and Senate Democrats cannot lose the support of anyone.

Read the original article on Business Insider

from Business Insider https://ift.tt/2VK0VeU