US House approves Biden's 'Build Back Better' spending bill

US lawmakers in the US House of Representatives endorsed President Joe Biden's mass domestic investment bill on Friday. The final vote was previously delayed as Republican Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy held it up with an hourslong critical speech.

Following the House vote, Biden praised the outcome as "another giant step forward in carrying out my economic plan to create jobs, reduce costs, make our country more competitive, and give working people and the middle class a fighting chance."

The $1.75 trillion (€1.54 trillion) plan, known as the "Build Back Better" bill, will provide funding to expand social programs like free preschool and affordable home healthcare for the elderly, as well as tackling climate change. The White House claims the legislation will provide millions of jobs.

"It’s fully paid for by making sure that the wealthiest Americans and biggest corporations begin to pay their fair share in federal taxes," Biden said in a statement.

The bill also aims to alleviate some healthcare costs, such as capping the cost of insulin and out-of-pocket drug expenses for seniors.

The draft is now headed to the Senate, the upper house of the US Congress.

Why was the bill criticized?

Opponents to the bill have accused the Biden administration of using it to give more tax breaks to the wealthy. Some Republican members of Congress argue that the legislation would increase the inflation rate at a time when consumer prices are already rising.   

Others expressed concerns when the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) concluded that it would initially add to the deficit, however, the CBO also forecast that it would generate a net increase in revenues of $127 billion through 2031.

According to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the total revenue of the bill could be even higher, as it will empower the IRS to go after longtime tax evaders.

Why was the vote delayed?

The House, where Democrats outnumber Republicans 221-213, was widely expected to pass the bill on Thursday. However, the lawmakers were forced to reschedule after Republican McCarthy broke a record for the longest speech ever held at the House floor. 

McCarthy spoke for eight and a half hours, delivering scathing remarks on problems the US faces under Biden, including immigration, inflation, and the rise of China.

"If I sound angry, I am," he said.

In turn, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi praised the bill as "historic, transformative and larger than anything we have ever done before."

"If you are a parent, a senior, a child, a worker, if you are an American, this bill’s for you, and it is better."

What happens next?

The bill now faces a tough battle in the Senate, where Democrats hold an extremely narrow majority.

Analysts suspect that the bill will have to be watered down significantly to pass in the Senate, where Democrats cannot afford to lose a single vote. This means that moderate Democrats, such as West Virginia's Joe Manchin, hold enormous sway over the vote as their colleagues move to placate them. Manchin and fellow Democrat Kyrsten Sinema have already raised concerns about some of its programs and its sheer scope.

Biden has already signed another trillion-dollar infrastructure package into law this week. The bipartisan bill represented America's biggest public-works package since President Dwight Eisenhower created the interstate highway system in 1956.

"We put in the work and look what we got — a Build Back Better Act that's fully paid for, reduces the deficit and helps American families," said Representative Carolyn Bordeaux, a Democrat from Georgia. "Now it's time to pass it."

The Senate has signaled that it is likely to cast a final vote on the bill in December or early January.

dj, es/rs (AP, Reuters)