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Photo: MICHAEL REYNOLDS / EPA
After months of struggle, the US Congress has decided on one of President Joe Biden's core domestic policy projects. A few weeks after the Senate, late on Friday evening (local time), the House of Representatives finally passed a major investment program aimed at modernizing the country's infrastructure. Around 550 billion US dollars in new investments in infrastructure are planned over the next few years. In total - including previously budgeted funds - the package is worth more than a trillion dollars. Violent dispute among Biden's Democrats over a second investment package had long delayed the infrastructure plans.
Only with the support of several Republicans could the Democrats get a majority for the project on the legs.
Six Democratic MPs voted against.
The vote was preceded by turbulent hours on Friday.
For much of the day it was unclear whether the vote would come at all, and until the last minute it was unclear whether a majority would be in favor of the package.
Biden once more had to intervene personally on the issue to avert a dramatic setback in Congress.
The success shows that the "arduous" search for consensus was worth it, Biden's spokeswoman Jen Psaki said on Twitter.
»Clean drinking water for children, broadband access, electric vehicles, major investments in local public transport.
It happens.
And more will come, ”she wrote.
Billions for roads, bridges and local transport
The billions in infrastructure are to be used in the coming years for roads, bridges, ports, airports, local transport and rail. Climate protection, which Biden has made a top priority, should also benefit from some of the projects. In the coming years, around 110 billion dollars will flow into the expansion or renovation of roads and bridges. Around 39 billion dollars are budgeted for local public transport, and another 66 billion dollars for the rail network. Funds are also earmarked for expanding the charging stations for electric cars and for promoting electric buses. A total of 42 billion dollars is calculated for ports and airports. The expansion of fast internet connections and the improvement of the water supply, including the replacement of all lead pipes,should be financed with the package. Around 65 billion dollars are also to flow into the modernization of the electricity infrastructure.
When he took office, Biden presented plans for billion dollar investments in both the country's infrastructure and welfare systems. The infrastructure package passed the Senate in August after long negotiations. But the final vote in the House of Representatives was still missing. This was delayed enormously, as Democrats from the left wing of the party used the vote as leverage in the negotiations on the second, even larger package of investments in social and climate protection, which met with some resistance within the Democratic Party. In view of the very narrow majority of the Democrats in both chambers of Congress, Biden is dependent on unity in his own ranks in order to implement his plans. It was a problem for months.
The second trillion package provides for an expansion of social benefits in the country and large sums for the fight against the climate crisis - financed by tax increases for corporations and top earners as well as the more consistent collection of due duties.
Moderate Democrats, however, had raised concerns about the high spending and called for the package to be cut.
Left-wing democrats, who wanted to push through the largest possible investments in social and climate change, threatened to block the infrastructure package unless the larger second package was secured at the same time.
The stalemate between the party wings dragged on for months.
Threats from Left Democrats
At the end of October, Biden had finally submitted a proposal for a slimmed-down social and climate package - with a volume of 1.75 instead of the initially targeted 3.5 trillion US dollars.
This brought new movement to the dispute over the packages.
However, the final spurt to the infrastructure vote was also chaotic.
Left Democrats threatened to let the package fail until the very end.
Biden telephoned MPs personally until late in the evening to organize a majority.
After intense discussions behind the scenes, moderate Democrats issued a written statement in which they held out the prospect of supporting the second investment package if they voted later in November.
That appeased left-wing Democrats.
The Democratic chairman of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, had also targeted a vote on the social and climate package for Friday, but had to postpone it again at short notice. Several Democratic MPs have requested additional data on the package, Pelosi said. It will take "about a week" to deliver this. The hope is to adopt the package afterwards - before the US holiday Thanksgiving at the end of November. After the House of Representatives, the US Senate would also have to give its approval, where a majority is also not yet considered secured. So Biden has to worry about this second package.
A heavy defeat for the Democrats in the gubernatorial election in Virginia a few days ago had increased the pressure on the party to break the stalemate.
The election was seen as a mood test for Biden's politics.
Even Democrats admitted that the wing battles over Biden's investment plans were probably one of the reasons for the debacle.
hen / dpa