WASHINGTON, DC – FEBRUARY 02: White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki answers reporters’ questions during the daily news briefing at the White House February 02, 2021 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
The Biden administration has claimed to be reaching for bipartisanship, but its new infrastructure proposal is not upholding its claims. At a press conference held at the White House on Friday, Press Secretary Jen Psaki said the White House’s new offer was made in the spirit of finding common ground. Despite claims of cooperation, she still grilled conservatives for not going far enough to address Biden’s priorities when it comes to infrastructure projects.
After the announcement, Senate Republicans released a statement saying that the White House’s new proposal was still well above the range of what could pass through Congress with bipartisan support. While the updated infrastructure plan is around $600 billion less than the original, it is still more than $1 trillion higher than the Republicans $568 billion offer.
Democrats' infrastructure proposal is just another $2-trillion progressive wishlist.
The Republican plan has real solutions for real infrastructure, with major investments in roads, bridges, water, and broadband—in total, an investment of $460 billion. https://t.co/pi6xnjERcx
— Kevin McCarthy (@GOPLeader) May 22, 2021
Despite Psaki praising the White House staff’s negotiating style, the GOP statement suggested far less progress could be made now that discussions were being outsourced to White House staff instead of being handled by Joe Biden directly. Further complicating any efforts to find common ground, Psaki confirmed that Biden has every intention to raise corporate tax rates in order to pay for the package, which was originally an idea Republicans had staunchly and repeatedly opposed.
Source: One America News Network
