总统乔·拜登周二标志着参议院的两党基础设施计划的通过当天早些时候，他在白宫发表演讲，吹捧这场政治胜利，并感谢与民主党一起投票的共和党参议员，他说这是他们团结起来为美国人民达成协议的“勇气”。
拜登在白宫东厅发表的胜利讲话中说:“经过一年又一年的基础设施周，我们正处于基础设施十年的尖端，我真的相信这将改变美国。
拜登赞扬了两党谈判代表，谈到了他竞选的主题——这位36年的参议院资深议员可以重振一个时代过去的两党合作。
“我要感谢参议员、民主党人和共和党人，感谢他们做了他们告诉我他们会做的事情。据报道，这项立法的夭折有点为时过早。他们说他们愿意以两党合作的方式工作。我要感谢他们信守诺言。这正是他们所做的，”拜登说。
该计划包括5500亿美元的新支出，将解决核心基础设施需求。其中包括1100亿美元用于道路和桥梁的新资金、660亿美元用于铁路、75亿美元用于建设电动汽车充电站、170亿美元用于港口、250亿美元用于机场、550亿美元用于清洁饮用水、650亿美元用于高速互联网等。
“这项法案表明，我们可以共同努力，”他继续说道。“从我宣布参选，并把国家团结在一起，以两党合作的方式做事的时候起，它就被描述为早期的遗迹。我从来不相信，现在也不相信。”
拜登还对参议院少数党领袖米奇·麦康奈尔(Mitch McConnell)发出了不同寻常的、具体的呼声，麦康奈尔与其他18名共和党人一起投票通过了该法案。
拜登说:“我要感谢共和党-参议院共和党领袖米奇·麦康奈尔支持这项法案。“特别感谢参议院多数党领袖查克·舒默。查克，你在参议院的领导能力很强。”
“对于支持这项法案的共和党人来说，你们表现出了很大的勇气。我想为此亲自感谢你。”共和国总统拜登说，他已经召集了与民主党一起投票的19名共和党参议员中的大部分人通过了基础设施法案。https://t.co/zhzwYLZ5sYpic.twitter.com/NRdZTJpnyu
—美国广播公司新闻(@美国广播公司)2021年8月10日
但是该法案还没有接近成为法律。
鉴于最终通过可能会推迟几周或几个月，拜登的胜利圈有点为时过早。拜登确实指出，要将该法案拿到他的办公桌上，还有很多工作要做。
“看，让我们说清楚。该法案远未通过，”拜登继续说道。“该法案将提交众议院，我期待在那里获得批准。我们必须着手处理我议程中的下一个关键部分，即我的“重建得更好”计划，”他说，他指的是需要众议院通过两党法案，而众议院议长南希·佩洛西继续坚称，她将在就两党一揽子计划进行投票之前收到3.5万亿美元的民主党预算法案。
假设参议院本周投票否决了3.5万亿美元的预算决议，多数党领袖斯滕尼·霍耶的办公室周二晚间宣布，众议院将在8月23日的一周对该法案进行投票——缩短休会时间。该商会计划于9月20日返回华盛顿。
早些时候，在白宫的每日简报会上，新闻秘书珍·普萨基被问及一些温和的众议院民主党人要求立即举行投票的压力。
“他传达的信息是，他仍然致力于在双轨上通过每一项立法。他将与佩洛西议长步调一致地工作，就像我们与(参议院多数党)领袖舒默步调一致地工作一样，在过去几周和几个月里成功地完成了这项工作，他对佩洛西议长的领导能力和战略方法充满信心，并期待在未来几周成为她的合作伙伴，”普萨基告诉记者。
尽管如此，拜登利用一切机会吹捧这一成就，指出基础设施法案在参议院获得的两党支持超过了1956年的《联邦高速公路法案》。
“当我们在美国本土投资时，美国往往拥有最大的繁荣和最大的进步。这就是这项基础设施法案的作用，”他补充道，并赞扬了它获得的“压倒性支持”。他说:“比1956年美国参议院通过州际系统时的投票优势更大。
拜登还自豪地指出，他遵守了自己的承诺，不对收入低于40万美元的人增税，这将使工人阶级家庭受益最大。
“我们将通过遵守我的承诺来做到这一切。我们不会对年收入低于40万美元的人增税一分钱。从工会到商界领袖，从经济学家到左派、右派和中间派，每个人都相信这项法案中包含的公共投资将为我们的经济带来更多的就业机会、更高的生产率和更高的长期增长。
副总统卡玛拉·哈里斯在总统面前发表讲话，还赞扬了这项协议，该协议使美国“离对我们国家的基础设施进行一代人一次的投资又近了一步”，并赞扬了拜登对两党合作的承诺。
“即使你签署法案成为法律，我们的工作也不会停止，”她说。
在参议院以69票对30票通过1.1万亿美元的两党基础设施法案，19名共和党人加入民主党后，舒默立即将众议院的事务转向民主党人希望通过预算和解通过的3.5万亿美元的“人力基础设施”一揽子计划，这一过程不需要共和党人的支持，他们没有。
Biden praises Senate passage of bipartisan infrastructure bill
PresidentJoe Bidenon Tuesday marked the Senate'spassage of a bipartisan infrastructure planearlier in the day with a White House speech touting the political win and thanking Republican senators who voted with Democrats for what he said was their "courage" to come together to strike a deal for the American people.
"After years and years of infrastructure week, we're on the cusp of an infrastructure decade that I truly believe will transform America," Biden said in triumphant remarks delivered from the White House East Room.
Biden praised the bipartisan negotiators, touching on themes from his candidacy -- the idea that this 36-year veteran of the Senate could reinvigorate the bipartisan cooperation of an era gone by.
"I want to thank the group of senators, Democrats and Republicans, for doing what they told me they would do. The death of this legislation was mildly premature as reported. They said they were willing to work in a bipartisan manner. And I want to thank them for keeping their word. That's just what they did," Biden said.
The package, with $550 billion in new spending, will address core infrastructure needs. It includes $110 billion in new funds for roads and bridges, $66 billion for rail, $7.5 billion to build out electric vehicle charging stations, $17 billion for ports, $25 billion for airports, $55 billion for clean drinking water, a $65 billion investment in high-speed internet and more.
"This bill shows that we can work together," he continued. "From the time I announced my candidacy, and bringing the country together, doing things in a bipartisan way, it was characterized as a relic of an earlier age. I never believed that, and still don't."
Biden also gave an unusual, specific shout-out to Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, who voted with 18 other Republicans to pass the bill.
"I want to thank the Republican -- Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell for supporting this bill," Biden said. "And special thanks to Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer. Your leadership, Chuck, in the Senate was masterful."
"For the Republicans who supported this bill, you showed a lot of courage. I want to personally thank you for that."Pres. Biden says he has called most of the 19 Republican senators who voted with Democrats to pass the infrastructure bill.https://t.co/zhzwYLZ5sYpic.twitter.com/NRdZTJpnyu
— ABC News (@ABC)August 10, 2021
But the bill is not close to becoming law yet.
Biden's victory lap is somewhat premature given a weeks or months-long delay in final passage could lie ahead. Biden did note that there was still a lot of work to be done to get the bill on to his desk.
"Look, let's be clear. The bill is far from down," Biden continued. "The bill goes to the House of Representatives where I look forward to winning its approval. We have to get to work on the next critical piece of my agenda, my Build Back Better plan," he said, referring to the need to have the House pass the bipartisan bill, while House Speaker Nancy Pelosi continues to insist she receive the $3.5 trillion Democratic budget bill before she will hold a vote on the bipartisan package.
Assuming that the Senate votes out the $3.5 trillion budget resolution this week, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer's office announced late Tuesday that the House will return the week of Aug. 23 to vote on that bill -- cutting its recess short. The chamber was scheduled to return to Washington on Sept. 20.
Earlier, at the daily White House briefing, press secretary Jen Psaki was asked about pressure from some moderate House Democrats to hold an immediate vote.
"His message is that he remains committed to passing each of these pieces of legislation, on dual tracks. That he is going to work in lockstep with Speaker Pelosi, just as we have worked in lockstep with (Senate Majority) Leader Schumer, successfully over the last several weeks and months to get this done, and he is confident in the leadership, the strategic approach of Speaker Pelosi and looks forward to being her partner in the weeks ahead," Psaki told reporters.
Still, Biden took every opportunity to tout this achievement, noting that the infrastructure bill passed the Senate with more bipartisan support than Federal Highway Act of 1956.
"America has often had the greatest prosperity and made the most progress when we invest in America itself. And that's what this infrastructure bill does," he added, praising the "overwhelming support" with which it passed. "A vote margin bigger than when the Interstate System passed in the United States Senate in 1956," he said.
Biden also proudly pointed out that he had kept his promise not to raise taxes on those making less than $400,000 -- and would benefit working class families the most.
"We're going to do all of this by keeping my commitment. We will not raise taxes by one cent on people making less than $400,000 a year. Everyone from union to business leaders, to economists, left, right and center, believe the public investment contained in this bill will generate more jobs, higher productivity, higher growth for our economy over the long-term," he insisted.
Vice President Kamala Harris spoke before the president, also extolling praise for the deal that moves the country "one step closer to making a once in a generation investment in our nation's infrastructure," and Biden, for his commitment to bipartisanship.
"Even when you sign the bill into law, our work will not stop," she said.
After the Senate passed the $1.1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill by a vote of 69-30, with 19 Republicans joining Democrats, Schumer immediately turned the chamber's business to the $3.5 trillion "human infrastructure" package which Democrats are hoping to pass via budget reconciliation, a process would not require the Republican support they do not have.
