Senate Republicans Have No Interest In Voting To Advance Infrastructure Bill

You know, when Senate Republicans and Democrats announced they had a deal on a bipartisan infrastructure bill, which China Joe announced and then scuttled with talk about putting all the hyper-left Dem wish list back in, I figured that it was already written

GOP: Bipartisan infrastructure deal has ‘no chance’ on Wednesday

Senate Republicans revolted on Monday against opening debate on infrastructure while a bipartisan bill is still being written, lining up in opposition to a squeeze play by Majority Leader Chuck Schumer.

Schumer and Senate Democrats need at least 10 Republicans to agree to advance a still-unwritten deal to spend nearly $600 billion on roads, bridges and broadband during a vote expected on Wednesday. But both Republican leaders and the GOP lawmakers working on the bipartisan infrastructure package carried the same warning for Schumer.

“He’s not going to get 60, let’s put it that way,” said Senate Minority Whip John Thune (R-S.D.). “The legislation is not drafted, the pay-fors are a long ways away. Patience is going to be a virtue.”

But patience has run thin among Democrats who have watched the bipartisan talks play out for more than three months now. Schumer scheduled the anticipated test vote Monday evening and his deputies and Democratic members of the cross-aisle group made clear they wanted to move forward.

“It’s Monday in the United States Senate. That’s Wednesday. That’s a long way between then and now,” said Sen. Patty Murray of Washington, the No. 3 Democratic leader. “We need a resolution to this. There’s a lot more work to get done.”

Um, how are they going to have any sort of vote on legislation that isn’t actually drafted? No one would bring an undrafted business plan to the board of directors to approve.

In his floor remarks Monday evening, Schumer said the legislation could be amended as early as Thursday if the bipartisan group finalizes legislative text by then. If not, Schumer said the Senate could begin voting on legislation that has passed infrastructure-focused committees with bipartisan support.

Schumer said all five Democrats negotiating the bill, including Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) and Kyrsten Sinema (D-Ariz.), supported his approach. He reiterated that Wednesday’s vote is part of a “routine process” and that “it’s a sign of good faith from both sides that negotiations will continue in earnest.”

So, vote on it Wednesday and we’ll tell you what’s in it Thursday? Does anyone trust Schumer with his routing process and good faith talk? This is a party that continuously negotiates in bad faith. In the case of infrastructure, they do this bipartisan thing, and Democrats are out there talking about either running a two track system and passing all their “human infrastructure” stuff with reconciliation or stuffing stuff back into the bipartisan bill. We know they’re attempting to sneak amnesty into the infrastructure bills, and even Lindsay Graham, who has been a “pathway to citizenship” guy, is against it.

Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski, another GOP negotiator, declined to say how she would vote Wednesday. But she added that if Schumer wanted the legislation to succeed, he would ensure “people have an opportunity to actually look at what they might be voting on.” Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah), another negotiator, said he’d vote no “if we are still working on major provisions of the bill and we don’t have a bill in front of us.”

If you don’t have two of the squishiest Republicans on-board, might be time to move on. And if Democrats try and play games, Graham has the right idea

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) in a Sunday interview said he’d be willing to mimic the actions of Texas Democrats and “leave town” to prevent Democrats in Congress from passing their $3.5 trillion reconciliation package.

“I would leave before I would let that happen,” the senator told anchor Maria Bartiromo on “Sunday Morning Futures.”

“So, to my Republican colleagues, we may learn something from our Democratic friends in Texas when it comes to avoiding a $3.5 trillion tax-and-spend package: Leave town,” he continued.

Let the GOP Senators walk out. Democrats will have no stand to complain after supporting the Texas Democrats.