House to vote on infrastructure bill, but Democrats’ infighting delays social spending measure

WASHINGTON — House Democrats were heading toward an uncertain vote Friday evening on the $1 trillion infrastructure package, but a final vote on the larger social spending and climate bill was delayed by continued infighting between centrists and progressives.

Democrats were also planning to vote Friday on a procedural measure related to the social spending bill. But a final vote was put off for over a week to allow time for the completion of an economic analysis of its costs demanded by moderates.

Scheduling the votes amounts to a significant gamble by Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-calif., because progressives have said for months that they would vote down the infrastructure bill unless it was paired with the social spending package.

On Friday, progressives urged Pelosi to postpone the infrastructure vote, with some threatening to vote against the infrastructure bill if Pelosi insisted on bringing it up without the social spending bill.

It remained possible that Pelosi would cancel the infrastructure vote if it appeared the measure would fail.

Bills rarely go to the House floor — particularly under her speakership — without assurance they will be successful, adding a significant level of uncertainty to how the evening would proceed.

But on Friday, Pelosi said she believed “there are a large number of members of the Congressional Progressive Caucus who will vote for the bill. That is my understanding.”

Pelosi faced few good options. Members of the Congressional

Black Caucus, who hold significant political sway, urged her to hold the two votes as a show of progress. Moderates would only agree to that if the vote on the infrastructure package was held first, according to Democratic sources.

While most major pieces of legislation suffer fits and starts during the legislative sausage making, the frenetic negotiation over this package has been particularly fraught, a reflection of the slim three-vote margin House Democrats hold.

It briefly appeared

Friday that progressives would back off from their demand to hold the two votes together. But now they must decide whether they will vote down part of Biden’s agenda on the floor and deliver Pelosi her first floor loss on a major vote. They huddled for more than two hours in a congressional meeting room to hash out a plan.

If the infrastructure bill fails, it won’t die. It can be brought up again for another vote.

“I have no idea” what will happen tonight, said Rep. Kaiali‘i Kahele, D-hawaii, who said he wouldn’t support the bipartisan infrastructure bill if it comes to the floor without the social spending bill.

Rep. Raul M. Grijalva, D-ariz., another progressive, said he would vote for the infrastructure bill rather than delay its passage.

“If that’s the way it ends up, what am I going to do, you know, continue to drag this out?” Grijalva said. “The risk of doing nothing, to me, is more profound than the sequence” of votes.

Other progressives said they would at least hear out Pelosi’s pitch.

“I’m open to giving the leadership a hearing,” said Rep. Ro Khanna, D-calif.

After passage in the House, the $1 trillion infrastructure bill, which the Senate approved in August, would go to Biden’s desk for his signature. A White House spokesperson said Friday that Biden would sign it.

While a successful infrastructure vote would be a sign of progress on the first portion of Biden’s agenda, the achievement has been overshadowed by the long and messy process to write the social spending measure.

Despite pressure from Biden and Pelosi, votes on the infrastructure bill were canceled three times because progressives would not support it until they had assurance the Senate would pass the social spending bill.

Friday’s vote marked a final separation of the two bills.

Biden has pledged to progressives that he would deliver the Senate votes on the spending bill. If the vote Friday is successful, it would symbolize that progressives trust that promise.

There is plenty of reason for progressives to be nervous. Centrist Sens.

Joe Manchin III of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona have already trimmed progressive priorities from the bill and have not publicly committed to supporting the latest $1.85 trillion version.