What next?

Some economists see it differently, said Greg Sargent in The Washington Post. Moody’s chief economist, Mark Zandi, released a report this week concluding that fears of a spending-triggered inflationary spiral are “likely misplaced,” and that failing to pass both infrastructure bills “would certainly diminish the economy’s prospects.” Why? Zandi blames a decades-long neglect of physical and human infrastructure, which could stifle labor productivity and leave the country ill-equipped to meet major future challenges, including competing with China. That’s “a striking endorsement” from a leading, pro-business economist. It suggests Republicans aren’t looking at the big picture.

“Procedural votes fail sometimes,” and Wednesday’s rejection “doesn’t have to be the end of the bipartisan infrastructure deal,” said Jim Newell in Slate.com. Republicans say they need more time, and Schumer could again request a vote next week or the week after. But whether the bipartisan bill will be revived “depends on how much each side wants—or needs—it.” It’s possible that remaining Republican willingness to work across the aisle will fizzle and Democrats simply decide to tack the hard-infrastructure bill’s provisions onto the $3.5 trillion bill they intend to pass through budget reconciliation. If the parties do continue working on a bipartisan bill, get ready for “a mesmerizing scorpion dance,” said Daniel Henninger in The Wall Street Journal. Multiple rounds of politicking will ensue as progressive and centrist Democrats battle each other and Republicans over “outlays” and “pay-fors.” It could get ugly. “Infrastructure is one of those things ‘everyone agrees’ needs to be done,” but the devil is in the details.

Saddling future generations with more debt is worrisome, said Jake Bittle in The New York Times, but the costs of failing to address climate change “are even higher.” For proof of the urgency of the climate measures in the $3.5 trillion infrastructure bill, look at the flooding that badly damaged a Detroit highway in June, or the buckling roads in heat-battered Portland, Ore. A 2018 study by the National Institute of Building Sciences found that each dollar the government spends on disaster mitigation prevents $6 in future damage. This is one area where large-scale spending shouldn’t be controversial. “Given the stakes of the crisis ahead of us, a bite-size infrastructure bill would be too small to afford.”