On Wednesday, Senate Republicans blocked a vote on infrastructure legislation. The vote was 49-51, with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) voting against it as a procedural move, so that he may bring the measure up again.
While the bill was a bipartisan effort, all Republicans voted against moving forward, as it is not yet finished. Republicans have also sent a letter to Schumer that they will be willing to start debate next week.
In their report for CNBC, Kevin Breuninger and Christina Wilkie covered Leader Schumer's Tuesday remarks as to why he thought the time was right for the vote:
Schumer argued that the procedural vote Wednesday to advance a House transportation bill that will comprise part of the ultimate infrastructure package was not a final deadline to finish the harder pieces of legislation but merely a starting point to begin formally debating what the bill should contain.
“It is not a cynical ploy. It is not a fish-or-cut-bait moment. It is not an attempt to jam anyone,” Schumer said on the Senate floor Tuesday morning.
“It’s only a signal that the Senate is ready to get the process started — something the Senate has routinely done on other bipartisan bills this year,” the majority leader said.
Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH), one of the senators who was instrumental in crafting the bipartisan legislature, emphasized it was not ready in "Squawk Box" appearance on Wednesday morning.
We’ve been working hard and are very close to a final agreement on the bipartisan infrastructure agreement.
— Rob Portman (@senrobportman) July 21, 2021
This bill is far too important for us to rush it in order to meet an arbitrary deadline. Let’s get this done right. pic.twitter.com/vTAlKHs7E5
A statement from 22 senators who worked on the bill together read:
“We have made significant progress and are close to a final agreement. We will continue working hard to ensure we get this critical legislation right—and are optimistic that we will finalize, and be prepared to advance, this historic bipartisan proposal to strengthen America’s infrastructure and create good-paying jobs in the coming days. We appreciate our colleagues on both sides of the aisle, and the administration, working with us to get this done for the American people.”
In acknowledging that the "legislative process" is "ongoing," White House Press Secretary on Wednesday referenced the remarks of Sen. Mitt Romney (R-UT). "Almost everything is resolved. ... We will have another vote I hope next week and we’ll be able to proceed to the bill. We have enough Republicans, 10 or 12 or more Republicans, that are supportive of going on the bill," he had said.
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