Biden’s massive $2tn infrastructure plan aims to spur economic revival

WASHINGTON: US President Joe Biden was on Wednesday expected to propose a $2 trillion infrastructure plan aimed at modernising America’s transport network, creating millions of jobs and enabling the country to “out-compete” China.

The first phase of Biden’s “Build Back Better” programme, which he was to unveil in a speech in Pittsburgh, details massive investment spread over eight years.

It plans to inject $620 billion into transport, including upgrading 32,000km of roads and highways, repairing thousands of bridges and doubling federal funding for public transit.

The US president intends to make the bold infrastructure plan one of his flagship policies.

“He views his role as laying out... a broad vision, a bold vision for how we can invest in America, American workers, our communities,” White House spokeswoman Jen Psaki said.

The investment would be partly paid for by raising corporate tax from 21% to 28%.

“The president is proposing to fundamentally reform the corporate tax code so that it incentivises job creation and investment... and ensures that large corporations are paying their fair share,” a senior administration official said.

The new legislative offensive comes soon after Congress passed a nearly $2 trillion Covid-19 economic stimulus plan.

Biden’s speech was aimed at opening a bitter battle in Congress, where the Democrats hold only a narrow majority and will face strong opposition from the Republicans. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said the package “needs to be way bigger”.

At the other end of the spectrum, Republican Senator John Barrasso dismissed the plan as “a Trojan horse for more liberal spending & higher taxes”.

The coming months will test the negotiating skills of the Democratic president, a veteran of Washington politics and dealmaking, and the chances of his infrastructure plan passing into law remain uncertain.

“It’s an important initiative to start the process with the president being very clear that he’s got a plan, and that he’s open to hearing what others think,” the administration official said.

“But what he is uncompromising about is the urgency of the moment and the need to really deliver for the American people and make good on building back better in this moment.”