{"id":257027,"date":"2021-05-23T21:51:36","date_gmt":"2021-05-23T18:51:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/biden-will-change-course-on-infrastructure-if-gop-talks-stall\/"},"modified":"2021-05-23T21:51:36","modified_gmt":"2021-05-23T18:51:36","slug":"biden-will-change-course-on-infrastructure-if-gop-talks-stall","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/biden-will-change-course-on-infrastructure-if-gop-talks-stall\/","title":{"rendered":"#Biden will ‘change course’ on infrastructure if GOP talks stall"},"content":{"rendered":"

“#Biden will ‘change course’ on infrastructure if GOP talks stall<\/strong>”<\/p>\n

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A White House adviser on Sunday said President Biden will \u201cchange course\u201d on his infrastructure deal if negotiations stall with Republicans \u2014 while GOP Rep. Susan Collins said \u201cfundamental differences\u201d between the two sides remain. <\/p>\n

\u201cHe wants a deal. He wants it soon, but if there\u2019s meaningful negotiations taking place in a bipartisan manner, he\u2019s willing to let that play out,\u201d Cedric Richmond said on CNN\u2019s \u201cState of the Union.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cBut again, he will not let inaction be the answer. And when he gets to the point where it looks like that is inevitable, you\u2019ll see him change course,\u201d he said Sunday.<\/p>\n

Richmond said the administration is still pursuing a bipartisan deal and pointed to the White House\u2019s counteroffer to the GOP infrastructure deal as proof it was willing to \u201cnegotiate in good faith.\u201d <\/p>\n

He was asked by CNN host Dana Bash if Biden would \u201cnarrow his plans\u201d further.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe president coming down $550 billion off of his initial proposal I think shows the willingness to negotiate in good faith and in a serious manner. And the real question is whether the Republicans will meet the effort that the president is showing,\u201d Richmond said.<\/p>\n

The White House on Friday proposed a pared down $1.7 trillion infrastructure bill from its original $2.23 trillion plan to counter a Republican offer of $560 billion.<\/p>\n

\"Cedric
Cedric Richmond<\/figcaption>
Bloomberg via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

But Collins (R-Maine) said Republicans and Democrats are not only far apart on the cost of the plan but on how each party views infrastructure.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think negotiations should continue, but it\u2019s important to note that there are some fundamental differences here, and at the heart of the negotiations is defining the scope of the bill. What is infrastructure?\u201d she said on ABC News\u2019 \u201cThis Week.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cWe, Republicans, tend to define infrastructure in terms of roads, bridges, seaports and airports and broadband. The Democratic definition seems to include social<\/a> programs that have never been considered part of core infrastructure,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

\"Sen.
Sen. Susan Collins<\/figcaption>
Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Collins said much of what is in the bill is already included in a bill introduced last year.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was glad that the president put a counteroffer on the table, but if you look closely at it, what he\u2019s proposing to do is move a lot of the spending to a bill that\u2019s already on the Senate floor, the Endless Frontier\u2019s bill. So I think we\u2019re still pretty far apart, but this is the test,\u201d Collins said. \u201cThis will determine whether or not we can work together in a bipartisan way on an important issue.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) agreed that the question of what should be included in an infrastructure bill is slowing debate as time runs out.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think the president would like to get there on a bipartisan deal. Our biggest gap is not the money. Our biggest gap is defining what infrastructure is,\u201d he said on \u201cFox News Sunday.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cI do think we\u2019ve got about a week or 10 days to decide if we can work together on this or not. I\u2019d like to. I believe the president would like to. The number is too big because the scope of what the White House staff wants to call infrastructure is way too big,\u201d Blunt, one of the Republicans on the negotiating team said.<\/p>\n

\"Sen.
Sen. Bernie Sanders<\/figcaption>
Michael Brochstein\/SOPA Images\/S<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Meanwhile, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) wouldn\u2019t rule out using the Senate procedure of reconciliation to allow Democrats to pass the measure with a simple majority vote if necessary.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe would like bipartisanship, but I don\u2019t think we have a seriousness on the part of the Republican leadership to address the major crisis facing this country. And if they\u2019re not coming forward, we\u2019ve got to go forward alone,\u201d Sanders said on CBS News\u2019 \u201cFace the Nation.\u201d<\/a>\n <\/div>\n