Democrats brushed aside monthslong divisions and approached House passage of their expansive social and environment bill Friday, as President Joe Biden and his party neared a defining win in their drive to use their control of government to funnel its resources toward their domestic priorities.
Final passage, which had been expected Thursday, was delayed as Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., held it up with an hourslong broadside criticizing Biden, Democrats and the bill.
Most Democrats abandoned the chamber after midnight with McCarthy still talking, and House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., told reporters that leaders planned for passage later Friday.
House approval was still expected on a near party-line vote. That would send the measure to a Senate where cost-cutting demands by moderate Sen. Joe Manchin, D-W.Va., and that chamber’s strict rules seem certain to force significant changes. That will prompt fresh disputes between party centrists and moderates that will likely take weeks to resolve.
