Senate Republican and Democratic leaders say it’s not clear whether a measure to allow Puerto Rico to restructure its staggering debt will advance or be blocked in a critical test vote Wednesday.
The Senate will vote whether to begin debate on the legislation, which would install a control board in the U.S. territory that would have the authority to help the island nation renegotiate the terms of $72 billion in money owed to creditors.
The House has already passed the measure and it is now up to the Senate, which is under considerable pressure to clear the bill for President Obama’s signature. Puerto Rico is at risk of default on Friday, when a $2 billion debt service payment is due that the territory doesn’t have.
“I hope so,” Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said when asked whether the bill would pass. To advance, 60 votes will be needed.
Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said he will vote for the bill but he does not know what other Democrats will do following a closed-door meeting Tuesday.
“There are some for it and some against it,” Reid said. “There are a lot of reasons to be against it. We all understand that.”
Obama is in favor of the bill and McConnell said the administration is working to build support among Democrats.
As for Republicans, McConnell said, “We are whipping it hard,” describing a term used to describe how lawmakers convince their colleagues to vote in favor of legislation.
“Obviously failure is not an option,” McConnell said.
Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., who holds some influence with the more liberal wing of the Senate Democratic Caucus, said he is opposed to the bill because the control board would be run by mostly Republican appointees, rather than citizens of Puerto Rico.
Sanders also wants the debt restructuring to favor the pensioners over the Puerto Rican creditors, and he opposes a provision allowing Puerto Rico’s governor to reduce the minimum wage and exclude workers from new overtime rules.
Sanders tweeted his opposition to the bill on Tuesday.
“The Republicans’ solution to the Puerto Rico debt crisis is colonialism at its worst,” he said on Twitter. He made similar comments on the Senate in a series of questions to Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., who held the floor for several hours to speak out against the bill.
Reid and other Democrats want McConnell to allow lawmakers to debate and vote on amendments, but it’s unlikely to happen.
The bill has passed the House and if it were amended, it would have to be sent back to the lower chamber for another vote. The House is not in session this week, so supporters are hoping the House version can pass in the Senate unchanged.
When the Senate votes Wednesday, it will be the last chance for Congress to move legislation prior to the July 1 debt payment deadline and perhaps the summer.
The House and Senate are in session together for about a week before both chambers recess until after Sept. 5.
Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., who supports the bill, said lawmakers are slowly coming around to support it, but said Democrats “hold the key” to it passing.
“We are gaining votes by the moment,” Rubio said of his fellow GOP lawmakers. “This is about as good a product that we are going to be able to produce before they unfortunately face a cliff here with their debt.”
