The two centrist lawmakers who have balked at the price tag and are now under pressure to show Biden what amount they could live with.<\/b>
\nWASHINGTON (AP) \u2014 Two key Democratic senators are expected to meet Tuesday with President Joe Biden at the White House as the party works to narrow his $3.5 trillion legislative package and momentum builds to close the deal with centrist and progressive lawmakers. Sens. Joe Manchin D-W. Va., and Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., are linchpins for the final package \u2014 two centrist lawmakers who have balked at the price tag and are now under pressure to show Biden what amount they could live with. Biden is expected to meet separately with Manchin and Sinema as he works to come up with a final number, according to a person familiar with the meetings and granted anonymity to discuss them. \u201cWe just have to make difficult choices,\u201d Speaker Nancy Pelosi told House Democrats during an evening caucus meeting Monday, according to a person granted anonymity to discuss the private session. She told House Democrats that Biden was \u201cworking on that piece\u201d \u2014 the overall figure for his signature measure \u2014 as negotiations were underway with the Senate. The behind-the-scenes talks come as Republican senators blocked a bill Monday to keep the government operating and allow federal borrowing. Democrats aiming to avert a shutdown pledged to try again \u2014 at the same time pressing ahead on Biden\u2019s big plans to reshape government. The efforts are not necessarily linked, but the fiscal yearend deadline to fund the government past Thursday is bumping up against the Democrats\u2019 desire to make progress on Biden\u2019s expansive $3.5 trillion social spending and climate legislation. It\u2019s all making for a tumultuous moment for Biden and his party, with consequences certain to shape his presidency and the lawmakers\u2019 political futures. \u201cYou know me, I\u2019m a born optimist,\u201d Biden told reporters Monday, as he rolled up his sleeve for a COVID-19 booster shot. \u201cWe\u2019re gonna get it done.\u201d Monday\u2019s 50-48 vote against taking up the bill fell well short of the 60 needed to proceed over a GOP filibuster. Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer switched his vote to \u201cno,\u201d a procedural step to allow him to bring the measure back for consideration. With days to go, Democrats said they will try again before Thursday\u2019s deadline to pass a bill funding government operations past the Sept.30 fiscal year-end, stripping out the debate over the debt limit for another day, closer to a separate October deadline. Meanwhile, the real action is unfolding behind the scenes over the $3.5 trillion measure, with Biden and his Democratic allies in Congress seeking a once-in-a-generation reworking of the nation\u2019s balance sheets. From free pre-kindergarten and child care subsidies for families with small children to dental care and hearing aids for seniors with Medicare, there\u2019s a lot in the president\u2019s proposal \u2014 all to be paid for with higher taxes on corporations and the wealthy. With Republicans solidly opposed, Democrats are rushing to trim the total and win holdouts within their own party. As the overall price tag comes down, Pelosi said the House Democrats would not move ahead on a bill until it is acceptable to their colleagues in the Senate. \u201cWe\u2019re not there yet,\u201d she said. Exiting the caucus meeting, Rep. Richard Neal, D-Mass., the chairman of the Way & Means Committee, said as momentum builds toward Thursday, he was expecting a new total amount: \u201cLet\u2019s pop the number.\u201d Building on a separate $1 trillion bipartisan public works package that\u2019s already cleared the Senate and is heading for a House vote Thursday, Biden is seeking major spending for health care, education and efforts to tackle climate change. The total price tag, he contends, is actually \u201czero\u201d \u2014 covered by the expected increase in tax revenue. He is personally calling fellow Democrats in Congress an effort to resolve differences and bring his sweeping domestic policy vision forward. Ticking off the weighty list of goals along with meeting the other deadlines, Biden said, \u201cIf we do that, the country\u2019s going to be in great shape.\u201d But Republicans say it\u2019s real spending that can\u2019t be afforded, and a reflection of the Democrats\u2019 drive to insert government into people\u2019s lives. And so far, the bill is also too big for key Democrats whose votes are needed in the face of the GOP opposition. Two Democratic holdouts, Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona, have said they won\u2019t support a bill of that size. Manchin has previously proposed spending of $1 trillion to $1.5 trillion. Progressive lawmakers said they\u2019ve already compromised enough with more centrist Democrats, but in one potential development, Rep. Pramila Jayapal, D-Wash., the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, confirmed she and Sinema have been in talks. Biden\u2019s proposal is to be paid for by increasing the corporate tax rate, from 21% to 26.5% on businesses earning more than $5 million a year, and raising the top rate on individuals from 37% to 39.6% for those earning more than $400,000 a year, or $450,000 for couples. While Democrats are largely in agreement on Biden\u2019s vision \u2014 many ran their campaigns on the longstanding party priorities \u2014 stubborn disputes remain, including how to push toward cleaner energy or to lower prescription drug costs. With all Republicans opposed, Democratic leaders can\u2019t spare a single vote in the 50-50 Senate, relying on Vice President Kamala Harris to break a tie to pass the eventual package. All this comes as other deadlines swirl this week to pay for government operations and allow more borrowing or risk a devastating federal shutdown or debt default \u2014 though those dire scenarios appear unlikely. The bill Senate Republicans rejected Monday night would have funded government operations temporarily, to early December, while also providing emergency funds for Hurricane Ida and other disaster relief and for Afghan refugees. Republican leader Mitch McConnell rejected that approach because Democrats also included a provision to suspend the debt limit, which would allow continued borrowing to pay off the nation\u2019s bills. McConnell has said he wants to fund the government and prevent a devastating debt default, but wants to force Democrats to split the package in two and take the politically uncomfortable debt ceiling vote on their own. \u201cRepublicans are not rooting for a shutdown or a debt limit breach,\u201d he said. Schumer called the Republican opposition \u201cunhinged.\u201d \u201cThe Democrats will do the responsible thing \u2014 the right thing, the thing that has been done for decades by both parties \u2014 and vote yes,\u201d said Schumer ahead of the vote.<\/p>\n