(AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
Joe Biden
After a Thursday meeting at the White House, President Joe Biden and a handful of Republican senators have agreed to continue negotiations on Biden’s $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan, the AP reports. The bipartisan effort is shaping up to be one the big pieces of Biden’s $4 trillion American jobs and families plan.
The GOP senators exited the lengthy White House meeting Thursday with no concrete agreements, but saying they are “very encouraged” to work with the president. Senate Republicans have a $568 billion proposal they had put forward as an alternative, and are willing to build on that with the President.
“I know they’re sincere about it and so am I,” Biden told reporters. “I assure you this is in good faith, it’s a genuine effort. I think we can get there.”
The meeting comes after Biden hosted the four top Senate and House leaders in the Oval Office on Wednesday in an effort to jumpstart infrastructure discussions measures. Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell and GOP House leader Kevin McCarthy made it clear that there will be no compromise on certain key points, but they are all willing to work together.
I had a productive meeting at the White House with President Biden and congressional leaders. There is a bipartisan desire to get an outcome on infrastructure. It will take a bipartisan process to get one. pic.twitter.com/TAyE4D6uzM
— Leader McConnell (@LeaderMcConnell) May 12, 2021
“There is certainly a bipartisan desire to get an outcome,” McConnell said. “Clearly Senate Republicans are not interested in revisiting the 2017 tax bill.”
“I think the President and Vice President understand that,” McConnell added. “Beyond that, we’re interested in trying to get an outcome. I think the first step is obviously to define what infrastructure is. We all agreed to work on that together.”
