The Democratic Party’s top legislative priorities face a key test in the Senate this week when lawmakers vote on a major election overhaul bill and scramble to wrap up a bipartisan deal on a massive infrastructure package.
The Senate will vote Tuesday on whether to consider an election reform bill that has been a top priority for Democrats since 2019. It would overhaul campaign finance laws, ban voter ID requirements, extend early voting days, reform redistricting, and enable ballot harvesting.
Democrats say the bill would counter new ballot laws implemented in some Republican-led states and would make voting more accessible.
The measure faces a near-certain GOP filibuster. No Republicans back the bill, and one Democrat, Joe Manchin of West Virginia, is seeking significant changes to secure his support.
The bill would need the backing of all 50 Democrats and at least 10 Republicans to proceed. As of Monday, the measure is poised to win only 49 votes.
Schumer argued on the Senate floor Monday that the legislation would simply combat GOP efforts nationwide to suppress the vote, which he compared to “Jim Crow” discrimination laws.
Several states have enacted new voter laws aimed at bolstering election integrity and reducing voter fraud, but Democrats believe the new laws are aimed at curbing voter access.
Democrats want Republicans to vote to bring the bill to the floor on Tuesday.
“Will our Republicans let us debate?” Schumer asked on Monday.
Democrats are also scrambling to secure a final deal on a bipartisan infrastructure bill worth roughly $1 trillion.
A growing number of lawmakers in both parties have signed on to a $978 billion package that would pay for traditional infrastructure projects.
Schumer hopes to pair the bipartisan infrastructure bill with separate legislation that would pay for other liberal priorities, including $400 billion for caregivers, money for universal free school and free community college, and $100 billion in electric vehicle tax credits, among other significant spending.
The second, larger package could pass using a budgetary tactic that allows some legislation to pass with only 51 votes. But Democrats would need every vote in their caucus and Manchin, as well as other centrists who say they want it paired with a bipartisan deal.
“I’m increasingly optimistic we can put together a bipartisan package,” Sen. Susan Collins, a Maine Republican, told reporters in the Capitol Monday.
The two parties remain at odds over how to pay for the $978 billion package, which includes $579 billion in new spending.
Democrats and the White House rejected a proposal to index the gas tax to inflation to pay for part of the package.
Now, they are looking for other ways to come up with the money without raising taxes, which Republicans will not support.
Some ideas include utilizing public-private partnerships.
“It raises a lot of questions,” Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin of Illinois said, describing the GOP funding proposals.
The bipartisan group has received “feedback” from the White House, but it has yet to talk directly to President Joe Biden. Lawmakers and the White House believe they need to secure a deal as soon as this week.
White House press secretary Jen Psaki said Biden plans to meet with lawmakers this week to discuss the bipartisan proposal.
