US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer says former president Donald Trump's false claim that the 2020 election was stolen is spreading like a 'cancer' among Republicans
US Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer says former president Donald Trump's false claim that the 2020 election was stolen is spreading like a 'cancer' among Republicans AFP / SAUL LOEB

KEY POINTS

  • The deal agrees on a top-line price tag of $3.5T for the infrastructure bill
  • It is not clear if all Dem senators support the deal
  • Deal would prohibit raising taxes on individuals earning less than $400k: Report

Senate Democrats have agreed on a top-line price tag of $3.5 trillion for a Democrat-only infrastructure package.

"The budget committee has come to an agreement. The budget resolution with instructions will be $3.5 trillion," Senate Majority Leader Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said late Tuesday after a meeting with Budget Committee Democrats led by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt.

The deal greenlights the reconciliation process that will allow Democrats to advance the sweeping social welfare and family aid programs that President Biden has promised, sidestepping a GOP filibuster.

"Every major program that President Biden has asked us for is funded in a robust way," Schumer said. Biden wiill meet with Senate Democrats on Wednesday.

A formal text of the budget resolution is yet to be released, Politico reported. Democrats will need all their 50 votes to pass the budget resolution and the infrastructure bill. It was not immediately clear if the deal had the support of all Dem senators. Centrist Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., warned earlier Tuesday that he wants a bipartisan infrastructure bill and a Democrat-only bill to be fully paid for.

The Hill quoted an unnamed Democrat aide familiar with the deal as saying the budget resolution will include language that prohibits raising taxes on individuals who make less than $400,000 or small businesses.

RELATED STORIES