WHIP LIST: How House Democrats, Republicans say they’ll vote on infrastructure bill
House Democratic leaders are vowing to follow through with a pledge to moderate lawmakers to vote on the Senate-passed bipartisan infrastructure bill — but they risk going to the floor without enough votes to pass it.
Progressives insist that they won’t hesitate to vote down the bipartisan bill if the larger, Democratic-only $3.5 trillion package to expand social safety net programs and other top liberal priorities isn’t done yet. They say more than half of the 96-member Congressional Progressive Caucus will vote against the bill if their demands aren’t met.
And while a number of members are not publicly revealing their positions, those who are represent a large enough group to tank the bill.
“They can take that bet if they want,” Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) said Sept. 21. “We would still have enough votes to defeat it.”
House Democrats can only afford up to three defections with their historically thin majority and pass legislation without any support from Republicans.
GOP leaders are whipping against the bill, and spokespeople for several Republican members of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus say they will vote against the measure. Those lawmakers include Reps. Ben Cline (Va.), Peter Meijer (Mich.), Dan Meuser (Pa.), Bryan Steil (Wis.) and Van Taylor (Texas).
But some GOP supporters have mounted a counter effort to convince Republicans in the House to back the measure.
Here’s a tally of which Republicans are pledging to support the measure, as well as lists of the Democrats who say they will not back it without further commitments on the larger spending package, and those who say they will back it.
RECENT UPDATES: Teresa Leger Fernandez (N.M.), Chrissy Houlahan (Pa.) and Nydia Velázquez (N.Y.).
REPUBLICANS (7)
Don Bacon (Neb.)
Bacon, a member of the Problem Solvers Caucus, confirmed to The Hill that he intends to vote for the bipartisan infrastructure bill.
Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa.)
The co-chair of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, Fitzpatrick says he will back the bill.
John Katko (N.Y.)
A spokesperson for Katko, another Problem Solvers Caucus member, told The Hill that he plans to back the legislation.
Adam Kinzinger (Ill.)
Kinzinger has broken with his party on several issues, including former President Trump’s impeachment, and has indicated he will back the infrastructure bill. “I support the legislation passed by the Senate, as well as the bipartisan negotiations that made it possible,” Kinzinger said after Senate passage in August.
Tom Reed (N.Y.)
Reed, the former Problem Solvers co-chair, told The Hill that he plans to vote for the bill.
Fred Upton (Mich.)
“Our infrastructure in Michigan is woeful. We need to rebuild our roads, bridges & ports. We need to expand rural broadband. We need to strengthen our energy grid. The bipartisan infrastructure bill does just that & more. Let’s do our jobs & pass this commonsense bill ASAP,” Upton tweeted Sept. 22.
Don Young (Alaska)
A spokesperson for Young confirmed to The Hill that he will vote for the bill.
DEMOCRATS
OPPOSE (21)
Jamaal Bowman (N.Y.)
Bowman told reporters at the Capitol on Sept. 29 that “I will be a no” on the bipartisan infrastructure bill without the social spending package in hand.
Cori Bush (Mo.)
“I will not support and vote for a bipartisan infrastructure bill that comes before reconciliation,” Bush, a member of the “squad,” said Sept. 21 on MSNBC’s “The ReidOut.”
Yvette Clarke (N.Y.)
“I cannot in good conscience support this ‘bipartisan’ infrastructure deal — which seems to lack any meaningful Republican support in the House — without assurances the Build Back Better Act will become law and not watered down by special interests seeking to maintain a status quo,” Clarke said in a Sept. 21 statement.
Mark DeSaulnier (Calif.)
“It is past time for us to invest in traditional infrastructure, but America has never invested in human infrastructure in the way the rest of the developed world has. We have to invest in both, and we cannot do one without the other. The stakes are too high and America’s working families have been left behind for too long,” DeSaulnier said in a Sept. 22 statement.
Veronica Escobar (Texas)
“I won’t support the bipartisan infrastructure bill until we first pass the Build Back Better Act,” Escobar tweeted on Sept. 23.
Jesús García (Ill.)
“Not knowing more details,” Garcia said of the social spending package, “I remain committed to that proposition” to oppose the infrastructure bill Monday.
“I am prepared to vote NO on the Senate’s ‘BIF’ unless and until we know that the Build Back Better Act will also become law,” Huffman tweeted on Sept. 21. “This is not just about political leverage, it’s about policy and preserving a livable planet.”
Pramila Jayapal (Wash.)
Jayapal, the chairwoman of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, has vowed that more than half her group won’t back the bipartisan infrastructure bill if the $3.5 trillion package isn’t ready yet.
Hank Johnson (Ga.)
“I will vote NO on BIF unless the Senate passes BBB, so we can finally empower human infrastructure and women,” Johnson tweeted on Sept. 23.
Andy Levin (Mich.)
“We said what we said,” Levin tweeted Sept. 21. “No bipartisan infrastructure bill without the Build Back Better Act.”
Ro Khanna (Calif.)
Khanna told CNN’s Jake Tapper on Sept. 24 that he would vote against the infrastructure bill if it was put on the floor without the demands of progressives being met. He predicted as many as 49 Democrats would vote “no” if the vote was held in such a situation.
Mondaire Jones (N.Y.)
“We’ve been clear all along: the Senate’s bipartisan infrastructure deal and the Build Back Better bill must move in tandem,” Jones tweeted on Sept. 21. “I’m looking forward to voting for the Senate deal if, and only if, we also pass a reconciliation bill that meets this moment.”
Teresa Leger Fernandez (N.M.)
“We promised our communities the Build Back Better Plan with the infrastructure bill together – they deserve nothing less,” Leger Fernandez tweeted on Sept. 30 after House Democratic leaders postponed a vote on the bill. “I’ll continue to #HoldTheLine until we keep our promise.”
Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.)
Ocasio-Cortez has vowed for weeks that progressives will hold to their end of the “bargain” and withhold votes if the reconciliation package they want isn’t passed yet.
“If there is not a reconciliation bill in the House and if the Senate does not pass the reconciliation bill, we will uphold our end of the bargain and not pass the bipartisan bill until we get all of these investments in,” Ocasio-Cortez said on CNN’s “State of the Union” last month.
Ilhan Omar (Minn.)
Omar, another member of the “squad” who serves as the Progressive Caucus whip, has been adamant that progressives will not back the bipartisan bill without the social spending package in hand.
Mark Pocan (Wis.)
“What they’re really doing, honestly, is they’re protecting the special interests that don’t want to pay for this,” Pocan said of centrists balking at the $3.5 trillion package during a virtual town hall on Sept. 21. “The best way we make sure that doesn’t happen is we don’t vote for one bill without the other. Because if we vote for the infrastructure bill, I don’t know if some of the senators who are, let’s just say, a little more special-interest friendly will do the right thing and get the other bill done.”
Katie Porter (Calif.)
“Congress now faces a choice: advance the entirety of an agenda that gets American families the help they need, or deliver only a fraction of it. That’s why we, as leaders of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, remain committed to voting for the infrastructure bill only after the Build Back Better Act is passed,” Porter, the Progressive Caucus deputy chair, wrote in a joint CNN op-ed on Sept. 27 with Jayapal and Omar.
Jan. Schakowsky (Ill.)
“If she [Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.)] were to call the bill, it will fail,” the Illinois Democrat told The Hill on Sept. 28. Schakowsky, a close ally of Pelosi’s, added: “Not because the Progressive Caucus, people like me, aren’t willing to vote for it. But … we had an agreement that we were going to get these two pieces [together].”
Rashida Tlaib (Mich.)
Tlaib, a “squad” member, confirmed that she would also vote against the bipartisan bill until the larger social benefits package is completed. “Same here,” she tweeted on Sept. 21 in response to Huffman.
Nydia Velázquez (N.Y.)
“We have a chance for a once-in-a-generation investment in working families and in the future of our planet,” Velázquez tweeted on Sept. 30. “That’s why I will not vote for an infrastructure bill without passage of the Build Back Better Plan.”
Jake Auchincloss (Mass.)
“Whenever the Speaker decides to bring the bill to the floor, Congressman Auchincloss will be a ‘yes,’ ” the lawmaker’s spokesman said.
Carolyn Bourdeaux (Ga.)
Bordeaux was part of the group of centrists that pressured Democratic leaders to commit to a Sept. 27 vote as part of a deal to advance a budget resolution to begin the process for the social spending plan in August.
G.K. Butterfield (N.C.)
“Congressman Butterfield said ‘yes’ to voting for the Senate-passed infrastructure bill if it is brought to a vote on the House floor,” said De’Marcus Finnell, a spokesperson for Butterfield.
Ed Case (Hawaii)
Case was another member of the group of centrists who secured the Sept. 27 commitment from leadership.
Jim Costa (Calif.)
Costa was also a member of the group of centrists who secured the Sept. 27 commitment from leadership.
Henry Cuellar (Texas)
Cuellar was part of the group of centrists who secured the Sept. 27 commitment from leadership.
John Garamendi (Calif.)
A spokesman for Garamendi said, “Yes, he’ll support it.”
Jared Golden (Maine)
Golden, one of the most vulnerable House Democrats heading into the 2022 midterm elections, was one of the centrists who secured the Sept. 27 commitment from leadership.
Vicente Gonzalez (Texas)
Gonzalez was another member of the group of centrists who secured the Sept. 27 commitment from leadership.
Josh Gottheimer (N.J.)
Gottheimer, a co-chair of the bipartisan Problem Solvers Caucus, was the leader of the group of centrists who secured the Sept. 27 commitment from leadership. He has been outspoken in calling for the vote.
Josh Harder (Calif.)
“I will proudly be voting YES on the bipartisan infrastructure bill this week,” Harder tweeted on Sept. 28.
Chrissy Houlahan (Pa.)
“I am in full, enthusiastic support of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act,” Houlahan tweeted on Sept. 29. “Failure to deliver this bill during a critical time for our nation is simply not an option.”
Susie Lee (Nev.)
A spokesperson for Lee, who likely faces a competitive reelection race in 2022, said that she has been “consistent” in calling for a vote “as soon as possible” on the bipartisan bill. Lee was among 10 Democrats who signed a letter to House Democratic leaders in July urging them to hold a vote “without any unnecessary or artificial delay upon arrival from the Senate.”
Chris Pappas (N.H.)
“I’m disappointed at the games being played by many in Washington – Democrats and Republicans alike,” Pappas tweeted on Sept. 30. “We must pass the infrastructure bill while we craft Build Back Better legislation that will protect the planet and improve people’s lives.”
Scott Peters (Calif.)
“I support immediate action on the bipartisan infrastructure bill,” Peters said in a statement after moderates secured the Sept. 27 pledge in August. “There’s no reason to hold this bill hostage while we work on what’s been left out, which is why I thank Speaker Pelosi and House leadership for making sure we vote on the bill before September 27.”
Dean Phillips (Minn.)
Phillips in a statement described himself as “among many advocating for the bipartisan infrastructure bill to be brought to the floor independent of reconciliation.”
Kurt Schrader (Ore.)
Schrader was another member of the group of centrists who secured the Sept. 27 commitment from leadership.
Elissa Slotkin (Mich.)
Slotkin, a top GOP target in the 2022 elections, said in August, “I believe that when it comes to the bipartisan infrastructure deal approved by the Senate, we must strike while the iron is hot.”
Haley Stevens (Mich.)
A spokesperson for Stevens confirmed that she will vote for the bipartisan infrastructure bill.
Thomas Suozzi (N.Y.)
A spokesperson for Suozzi said that he will vote for the bipartisan bill.
Filemon Vela (Texas)
Vela was another member of the group of centrists who secured the Sept. 27 commitment from leadership.
Susan Wild (Pa.)
“I’m in full support of the bipartisan infrastructure bill, and I am proud to cast my vote for it today,” Wild tweeted on Sept. 30.
John Yarmuth (Ky.)
Yarmuth, the House Budget Committee chairman, told reporters on Sept. 22 that he will vote for the bipartisan bill.
Updated on Oct. 1 at 2:32 p.m.
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