The Senate passed the $1.1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill negotiated by the White House and a team of eight key Senators Wednesday, clearing the first major hurdle to getting a significant victory for the Biden Administration, USA Today reports.
By 67-32 vote, the Senate voted to bring the bill to the floor of the Senate for debate, closing the opportunity for Republicans to filibuster the bill. Seventeen GOP Senators joined all the Democrats on the cloture vote.
The bill is the first of two infrastructure bills to come to Congress; the second will be a $3.5 trillion bill that Democrats will likely pass needing only 50 votes and the Vice President’s tie-breaker. The bipartisan “hard” infrastructure bill will concentrate on traditional infrastructure programs like transportation and energy projects. President Joe Biden tweeted earlier that it will be the largest US infrastructure bill in the last century.