Senate Republicans said there are “vast differences” between them and senior White House officials over how much to spend on a new infrastructure package and …
Senate Republicans said there are “vast differences” between them and senior White House officials over how much to spend on a new infrastructure package and how to pay for it, leaving little hope of a bipartisan deal anytime soon. A spokeswoman for Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (W. Va.), one of the lead GOP negotiators, said a White House counteroffer proposed during a Friday afternoon conference call with GOP lawmakers was “well above the range of what can pass Congress with bipartisan support.” White House officials presented to the Senate Republicans a $1.7 trillion infrastructure spending plan, which represents a $550 billion reduction to President Biden ’s $2.25 trillion American Jobs Plan. That offer fell flat with Capito and other Republicans. “There continue to be vast differences between the White House and Senate Republicans when it comes to the definition of infrastructure, the magnitude of proposed spending, and how to pay for it,” said Kelley Moore, a spokeswoman for Capito. “Based on today’s meeting, the groups seem further apart after two meetings with White House staff than they were after one meeting with President Biden,” the aide added.
