Sunday shows – Infrastructure in the spotlight

President Biden’s $2 trillion dollar infrastructure proposal dominated the Sunday morning political talk shows.

Biden last Wednesday unveiled his $2 trillion infrastructure proposal, branded “The American Jobs Plan.” It includes funding for transportation infrastructure and modern infrastructure like broadband and upgrading buildings, and investments in the care economy to assist health workers and innovation and research and development of future technologies.

Read The Hill’s complete coverage below.

White House official says infrastructure bill’s goal is sustained job growth By JOHN BOWDEN    “We think we can not only have a strong job rebound this year, but we can sustain it over many years. That’s the goal,” Brian Deese, the head of the National Economic Council, said.  Read the full story here

GOP senator: Smaller package focused on physical infrastructure would be ‘easy win’ for Biden By JOHN BOWDEN    Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) said Sunday that a smaller infrastructure package focusing on physical needs such as roads and bridges would quickly pass the upper chamber and represent an “easy win” for the Biden administration. Read the full story here

Sanders says ‘a lot more work has to be done’ on ‘human infrastructure’ By MYCHAEL SCHNELL   Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on Sunday called President Biden’s $2 trillion infrastructure plan a “serious proposal,” but signaled that “a lot more work has to be done” in what he is calling “human infrastructure.” Read the full story here

GOP governor: Infrastructure proposal looks more like the Green New Deal By MYCHAEL SCHNELL   Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves (R) on Sunday weighed in on President Biden’s $2 trillion infrastructure proposal, saying it looks more like the Green New Deal, an ambitious climate proposal touted by progressives. Read the full story here

Biden economic adviser: ‘It’s important we upgrade our definition of infrastructure’ By MYCHAEL SCHNELL   Cecilia Rouse, the chair of the Council of Economic Advisers, on Sunday said it is important to “upgrade our definition of infrastructure” when discussing President Biden’s $2 trillion infrastructure proposal. Read the full story here

Energy secretary suggests White House is open to passing infrastructure bill through reconciliation By MYCHAEL SCHNELL    Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm on Sunday suggested that the White House is open to passing its $2 trillion infrastructure plan using reconciliation if no Republican lawmakers support the legislation. Read the full story here

Buttigieg says infrastructure plan will cut deficit ‘by year 16’ By JOHN BOWDEN   Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Sunday that the Biden administration’s plan for infrastructure reform would pay for itself and begin chipping away at the deficit 16 years after it is passed. Read the full story here

Fox’s Chris Wallace challenges Blunt over GOP’s ‘credibility’ on national debt By JOHN BOWDEN   Fox News host Chris Wallace challenged Republican Sen. Roy Blunt (Mo.) on Sunday to defend the GOP on the issue of the national debt. Read the full story here

Biden adviser acknowledges messaging ‘problem’ surrounding COVID-19 immunity and travel By JOHN BOWDEN   Michael Osterholm, a top epidemiologist and member of President Biden’s COVID-19 advisory board, acknowledged that a messaging “problem” exists surrounding whether Americans are completely safe from contracting COVID-19 after being vaccinated and if they should travel. Read the full story here

Blunt says it would be ‘mistake’ to keep Capitol fencing up By OLAFIMIHAN OSHIN   Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) suggested on Sunday that the fencing around the Capitol should still be removed in the wake of an attack on Friday in which a car was rammed into a barricade.  Read the full story here

Omar: Minneapolis community is ‘on edge’ around Chauvin trial By MYCHAEL SCHNELL   “We have seen justice not delivered in our community for many years. I think that there is a lot of confidence in Attorney General Keith Ellison and the prosecutors in this case, but we are all eagerly awaiting to see how this trial shakes out,” Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) said. Read the full story here