(The Center Square) - The bipartisan infrastructure bill failed a procedural vote in the Senate as both sides look to go back the negotiating table to finalize details.
The Senate voted 51-49 against moving the bill to debate, falling short of the 60 votes required to move the bill forward. All 50 Republican Senators and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., voted against advancing the bill to debate.
Schumer, who introduced the bill and called for the procedural vote, changed his vote from the affirmative to against just before the tally was finalized.Â
âAt the end of the vote, I changed my response to no so that I may move to reconsider this vote at a future time,â said Schumer on the Senate floor after the vote failed.
Informal talks could continue if the Senate votes Wednesday against debating it on the floor.
Sen. Chuck Schumer set up the vote because the legislative calendar is getting crowded.
WASHINGTON – The odds a bipartisan infrastructure bill will move forward Wednesday appear grim as Senate Republican negotiators said they wouldn t vote to debate the measure because the details haven t been finalized.
“We can’t support cloture for something we haven’t accomplished yet,” said Sen. Rob Portman of Ohio, the lead negotiator for Republicans. “We haven’t come to agreement on key issues.”
The negotiators are crucial to moving the bill along. Nearly a dozen Senate Republicans, including Portman, struck a deal with President Joe Biden in June on the infrastructure plan. Since the 50 Democratic senators need at least 10 Republicans to support the bill to clear a parliamentary hurdle for debate,
Infrastructure bill blocked by Senate Republicans as lawmakers haggle over details Bart Jansen and Savannah Behrmann, USA TODAY
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WASHINGTON – Senate Republicans on Wednesday blocked the start of formal debate on bipartisan infrastructure legislation, a core part of President Joe Biden’s economic plan, because the bill text and cost weren’t available as negotiations continued.
The 51-49 vote against beginning debate, which needed to clear a 60-vote threshold to succeed, came after a series of late-night negotiations. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., changed his vote to help defeat the measure so he could be on the prevailing side to call it up for another vote in the future. Senators continue to haggle over details on transit and how to pay for the entire package.
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Debt-ceiling brinksmanship is back on Capitol Hill. Senate Republicans are threatening to vote against any increase to the cap unless Congress also enacts spending cuts or other reforms, potentially setting up another risky showdown this fall over the federal government’s borrowing limit. Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY) told Punchbowl News Tuesday night that he can’t envision any Republican voting to raise the debt ceiling and said that Democrats should address the issue in the budget reconciliation package they want to pass without GOP support. “The new ultimatum marked a reversal for Republicans, who agreed to address the debt ceiling the statutory amount the government can borrow to pay its bills multiple times to advance policies under President Donald Trump that helped add $7 trillion to the federal debt during his term,” The Washington Post’s Tony Romm and Seung Min Kim note.
Rep. McConnell: GOP won’t vote to raise debt ceiling
Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell(R-Ky.) speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol on June 17, 2020 in Washington, D.C. (OLIVIER DOULIERY/AFP via Getty Images)
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Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) said Republicans won’t support raising the debt ceiling. In an interview on Tuesday, McConnell stated “I can’t imagine a single Republican in this environment voting to raise the debt limit.
He told Democrats to include the hike in the second infrastructure bill they plan to pass through reconciliation.