Former President Donald Trump said Friday that the bipartisan infrastructure bill that cleared the Senate after months of deliberation would lead to a “massive socialist expansion.”
On Wednesday, the Senate voted 67-32 to move forward with the legislation, with 17 Republicans joining their Democratic colleagues in favor of the bill. Earlier in the day, GOP leaders announced they had hashed out the “major issues” with the proposal, which includes $550 billion in new spending.
Trump warned his audience that the legislation would be the “biggest government expansion” in recent memory. He also speculated that Democrats would use the bill to spur tax increases and “government run healthcare.”
SENATE ADVANCES $1.2 TRILLION BIPARTISAN INFRASTRUCTURE DEAL AFTER LAST-MINUTE WRANGLING
“The RINOs in the Senate are delivering a big win by caving to the Radical Democrats on infrastructure. Once they pass this bill out of the Senate, it will sit in the House until they get steamrolled by the biggest government expansion in a generation,” the 45th president said in his latest email statement.
“Tax increases on everyone, government run health care, more government run schools, amnesty for illegal immigrants, MASKS, and many more terrible socialist programs,” he added.
The legislation needs to be cleared by the House before it can take effect. However, Speaker Nancy Pelosi has vowed not to move forward with a floor vote on the bipartisan legislation unless the Senate first approves a much larger $3.5 trillion reconciliation package. The package would involve funding for social programs, including free community college and healthcare subsidies.
She reiterated her position in a Wednesday press conference and indicated she couldn’t “commit” to passing the bipartisan bill because she didn’t “even know what it is yet.”
Trump slammed Pelosi for wanting “everything else” in an infrastructure package, which he said could include a revocation of the tax cuts championed by his administration.
“Nancy Pelosi has said NO INFRASTRUCTURE until they get everything else,” Trump said. “Infrastructure is just a ‘carrot’ for a massive socialist expansion. Why are RINOs so desperate to push bad, Radical Leftist policies? And at the same time give a big win to the Democrats.”
“They will be forced to give up some of the incredible tax cuts gotten during the Trump Administration, one of its many hallmarks. This is bad legislation and politically irresponsible. The Democrats will use it to show they can get anything they want from the Republicans,” he warned.
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Republicans behind the deliberations insist no new tax increases will be necessary to pay for the bipartisan proposal.
“We’ve made a lot of progress so far on an historic investment in our nation’s core infrastructure that will be fully paid for without raising taxes,” Indiana Republican Sen. Todd Young said in a statement after the vote. “I look forward to continuing to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle as we sand and polish the final product.”
