House Democrats postponed a much-anticipated vote on President Joe Biden’s social safety net and climate package early Friday morning after Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy delayed a final vote with a long, wide-ranging and often angry speech.
The House is now slated to meet at 8 a.m. on Friday to finish consideration of the Build Back Better bill.
McCarthy, who began speaking at 8:38 p.m., crossed the six-hour mark in a speech that criticized the bill as reckless and inveighed against Biden’s presidency overall.
He discussed unrelated matters like the Southern border, Afghanistan policy, recruitment of police officers, poll numbers and the problem with “one-party rule.”
A senior Democratic aide told NBC News that McCarthy “is welcome to continue his raving as late into the night as he wants. The House will return and vote first thing Friday morning so the American people know heading into Thanksgiving week that House Democrats are fighting with President Biden to Build Back Better.”
