Jayapal: ‘The votes aren’t there’ to pass infrastructure bill on Monday

Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) said on Sunday that she does not anticipate a vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill to happen on Monday as initially proposed. 

“The votes aren’t there,” Jayapal, who chairs the Congressional Progressive Caucus, said on CNN’s “State of the Union.”   

Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal says she doesn’t think there will be a vote on the bipartisan infrastructure bill tomorrow by the proposed September 27 deadline: “The votes aren’t there.” #CNNSOTU pic.twitter.com/kNWKsmedAa

— CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) September 26, 2021

“I don’t believe there will be a vote,” Jayapal said. “The Speaker is an incredibly good vote counter, and she knows exactly where her caucus stands, and we’ve been really clear on that.”  

“This is a pre-conference bill, which means everybody, everybody in the Senate, everybody in the House, has to agree to it,” Jayapal noted.

“I think the urgency is important,” Jayapal added of talks regarding a larger $3.5 trillion spending package, noting that the “vast majority of the Democratic caucus” supported the president’s “Build Back Better” agenda. 

“We want to have it happen as soon as possible,” Jayapal said. “We need the Senate to engage with us if that’s going to happen.”

Jayapal’s remarks come as moderates and progressives have been unable to agree about the price tag and content of the larger spending bill, which Democrats hope to pass without Republican support.

Progressive leadership has demanded that the infrastructure bill vote be linked to the reconciliation package, but moderates say the $3.5 trillion plan is too pricey.