Graham says bipartisan infrastructure deal possible

WASHINGTON — A senior Republican senator said a $579 billion bipartisan accord on infrastructure is on the table and he challenged President Biden to decide whether he wants to pursue it.

South Carolina’s Lindsey Graham, who’s in a group of 21 senators from both parties who last week signed on to the framework of a plan to present to Biden, was among lawmakers seeking to set the stage for the next round of bargaining. Biden has said he’ll review the bipartisan proposal on Monday.

“I would just say this: President Biden, if you want an infrastructure deal with a trillion dollars it’s there for the taking — you just need to get involved,” Graham said on “Fox News Sunday.”

With the Senate and House nearing extended July 4 recesses, talks are down to the wire on a possible compromise authorizing a big boost for roads, bridges and other critical infrastructure, even as Senate Democrats pursue a second track for a Democrat-only bill that could entail vast expansions of other social spending Biden has put forth.

How to pay for the infrastructure spending is the most problematic, immediate issue dividing the two parties as well as Democrats’ moderate and progressive wings.

The White House on Friday reiterated Biden’s opposition to indexing the gasoline tax to inflation to help pay for an infrastructure plan, raising questions about the viability of the bipartisan compromise emerging in the Senate. The White House also hasn’t embraced other ideas on the table, including a fee on electric vehicles and repurposing unspent COVID-19 relief funds.

Senate Budget Committee Chair Bernie Sanders, a leading progressive, said Sunday he couldn’t commit to the bipartisan plan.

Sanders, I-Vt., said on NBC’s “Meet the Press” that it’s “mostly good” because the spending on infrastructure is critically needed, but that he has concerns about the same “pay-fors” like gas tax indexing that haven’t been signed onto by the Biden administration, as well as an “infrastructure bank” favored by Republicans to harness private investment.

“One of the concerns that I do have about the bipartisan bill is how they are going to pay for their proposals, and they’re not clear yet,” Sanders said.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/35ErZ0t