WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Democratic leaders in the U.S. House of Representatives said they would not vote on Thursday on a bipartisan infrastructure plan as their leaders had suggested after progressives balked.
Dozens of progressive Democrats in the House opposed a quick vote on a $1 trillion infrastructure bill until agreement is reached on a larger social spending bill, their leader said on Thursday.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi earlier in the day had urged Democrats to vote Thursday to pass the infrastructure bill, giving President Joe Biden a legislative victory.
But Representative Pramila Jayapal, the chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said the group was holding out for more of Biden’s agenda to be ready to pass.
Progressives had long said they would not vote for the infrastructure bill, which passed the Senate with bipartisan support in August, until the details of the larger bill – once targeted at $3.5 trillion – were worked out.
Democrats said the chamber’s last vote of the week would be on a temporary transportation funding bill.
(Reporting by Tim Ahmann and Kanishka Singh; Editing by Mohammad Zargham and Cynthia Osterman)
