House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she wants key Democrats who deal with infrastructure issues in Congress to consult with Republicans to come up with a big public works package.
“Our recovery plan must Build Back Better For The People in every ZIP Code by creating good-paying jobs for the future,” she said in a statement issued late Friday afternoon.
“To that end, I have called upon the Chairs of the Committees of Jurisdiction to work with their Republican counterparts to craft a big, bold and transformational infrastructure package,” she said.
Republicans have accused Democrats of hypocrisy, saying President Joe Biden talked up bipartisanship in his inaugural address while Democrats froze Republicans out of the writing of the $1.9 trillion economic stimulus plan Biden signed into law Thursday.
Whether Democrats will take the same approach — pass a budget that allowed later spinoff legislation that could pass the Senate with only Democratic votes — with infrastructure
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as they did with the stimulus is unclear, but Republicans have warned against going it alone.
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Pelosi’s statement Friday did not mention the procedural path infrastructure legislation would take but it said it should address environmental concerns, an idea some Republicans have said is unneeded.
“Building our transportation system has long been bipartisan. It is our hope that spirit will prevail as we address other critical needs in energy and broadband, education and housing, water systems and other priorities. As we engage in these job-creating initiatives, we must discuss their impact on the federal budget, on creating economic growth and on preserving our planet,” Pelosi said.
