The measure handed 51-50 on a celebration line vote, however solely after Vice President Kamala Harris confirmed up on the Capitol to interrupt the tie.
However the course of additionally highlighted some bipartisan consensus. One of many extra important amendments got here from a bipartisan group of senators, led by Democratic Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Republican Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, that may stop “higher revenue taxpayers” from being eligible to obtain $1,400 Covid aid checks. Whereas the modification was adopted 99-1, it’s not binding and doesn’t imply that the eligibility necessities might be modified within the remaining Covid aid invoice. But it surely expresses broad consensus to make the modifications.
On one carefully watched challenge, Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa supplied an modification to stop a hike within the minimal wage to $15 an hour throughout a pandemic. Democrats wish to embody a $15 minimal wage within the Covid aid invoice, however her measure may have been sophisticated for centrist members — like Manchin, who has a unique place than most of his caucus and helps a extra modest enhance within the minimal wage.
However earlier than a roll name vote was referred to as, Sen. Bernie Sanders, the Vermont Impartial who’s the chair of the Finances Committee and a champion of the $15 minimal wage, intervened and stated his proposal would truly make the bounce to $15 over 5 years, not straight away as Ernst had formulated in her modification. With that, her modification was shortly adopted by unanimous consent.
An modification by Republican Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas in opposition to increasing the Supreme Court docket, the so-called follow of court docket packing that’s advocated by some progressives to offset the conservative majority of the court docket, was defeated on a 50-50 vote.
What occurs now?
The finances decision that handed shouldn’t be the Covid aid invoice. It merely units the stage for Democrats to have the ability to use a course of referred to as “finances reconciliation” to cross the aid invoice on a party-line vote, probably in late February or March, after the impeachment trial of former President Donald Trump is full within the Senate.
The Home already handed the finances measure earlier within the week. However as a result of it was amended within the Senate it might want to return to the Home for a remaining vote, probably Friday.
A Biden aide instructed CNN Friday the Senate’s passage of the decision is a “optimistic step ahead” and that the White Home is “wanting ahead to continued progress to getting help to the American folks.”
White Home press secretary Jen Psaki reiterated throughout a briefing this week there are particular “backside traces” that Biden needs to be within the subsequent spherical of Covid-19 aid, together with direct funds reaching extra Individuals than what the Republican proposal would come with.
“His view is that at this level in our nation, when 1-in-7 American households haven’t got sufficient meals to eat, we’d like to verify folks get the aid they want and usually are not left behind,” Psaki stated, including that the administration views the chance “shouldn’t be going too massive, it’s going too small.”
Reconciliation has been used many instances by each events to cross controversial laws over the objections of the minority celebration, together with then-President Barack Obama’s Inexpensive Care Act in 2010 and Trump’s sweeping tax cuts in 2017.
Republicans are sad Democrats are resorting to the aggressive tactic, although, arguing it’s going to set a partisan tone for the remainder of Biden’s presidency and that he is not working because the political unifier he pledged to be.
“We stay dedicated to working in a bipartisan trend and hope that you’ll have in mind our views because the legislative course of strikes ahead,” the group, led by Maine Sen. Susan Collins, stated.
CNN’s Lauren Fox, Phil Mattingly, Jeremy Diamond and Morgan Rimmer contributed to this report.
