WASHINGTON — A deal has been reached on infrastructure in the Senate which voted to move the legislation forward into debate on Wednesday.
The bill has $550 billion in new spending specifically geared towards roads, bridges, broadband Internet, and green energy. 17 Republicans joined every Democrat in the Senate in voting to advance the bill on a 67-32 vote, moving it past the 60 vote threshold.
Indiana Sen. Todd Young (R) was one of those 17 Republicans who voted yes.
“As the Crossroads of America, Indiana understands the need for federal investment in our crumbling infrastructure, especially with nearly 5,500 miles of Hoosier highways in poor condition,” Young said. That’s why I voted today to formally begin debate on a bipartisan infrastructure bill.”
Though he supports the bipartisan deal, he is warier of what lies ahead after the bill moves off of their laps.
“The Democrats are engaged in a reckless, multi-trillion-dollar spending spree,” Young said at a Wednesday press conference. “We have not seen the level of price increases on account of the (American Rescue Plan) since 2008.”
It’s this spending that has turned Sen. Mike Braun, Indiana’s other Republican senator, off to the infrastructure bill. Braun was one of the 32 Republicans to vote against opening debate.
“Congress can’t keep spending trillions of dollars we don’t have,” Braun said. “The infrastructure package announced today continues the trend in Congress of insane deficit spending. Needless to say, I will not support this legislation.”
Braun said there are legitimate infrastructure needs in the U.S., but that this bill will “throw fuel on the fire” with rising inflation.
Young is chastising the White House for shrugging off the issue of inflation as “temporary”.
“That’s easy for the president to say,” Young said. “He doesn’t have to gas up his car. He doesn’t have to replace household appliances when they go out, as my constituents do.”
Republicans don’t want a follow-up bill to move forward that is worth $3.5 trillion to be spent on what Democrats call “human infrastructure” which includes medicare expansion and provisions to fight climate change.
