Biden's social-safety-net extension passes the House, but the Senate faces significant challenges.

 

(CNN)House Democrats have voted to pass President Joe Biden's $1.9 trillion social safety net expansion bill, a win for the party despite the fact that the bill has a difficult path in the Senate.

The final score was 220 to 213 in favor of the team. Only one Democrat, Maine Rep. Jared Golden, voted against the measure, while no Republican voted in favor.

The vote was held on Friday morning after House Republican Leader Kevin McCarthy stymied a vote on Thursday evening by delivering a record-breaking protracted floor address.

The comprehensive economic legislation is a cornerstone of Biden's domestic agenda. It would carry out long-standing Democratic commitments by massively extending social services for Americans, striving to alleviate the climate problem, expanding health-care access, and providing assistance to families and children.

After the vote, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi applauded the bill's approval. "This bill is enormous. It's historic, transformational, and far more than anything we've ever attempted "At a news conference, she stated.

However, now that the plan has been adopted by the House and must be taken up by the Senate, Democrats face a tremendous hurdle, one that will put party unity to the ultimate test.

Senate Democrats have no margin for error in passing the bill, and key legislators, including moderate West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin, have expressed reservations about the idea as policy battles loom.

What should be included in the bill?

The Build Back Better Act, a proposal to expand the social safety net, is a key aspect of Biden's policy agenda and an attempt by congressional Democrats to pass a massive extension of the safety net.
A second $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill was just enacted by the House and Senate and signed into law by Biden, marking a huge legislative success for both parties.
The Improve Back Better Act is a Democratic proposal to build on traditional infrastructure spending by making significant investments in social programs and addressing the climate problem.

The bill would establish a universal pre-kindergarten program, prolong the enhanced child tax credit, and increase access to health care, affordable housing, and home care for elders, among other things.

Democrats claim that the bill's measures are urgently needed and will benefit the majority of Americans. Republicans, on the other hand, have blasted the bill as a rash and politicized tax-and-spend bill.

According to a summary, the Congressional Budget Office gave the plan its final score early Thursday evening, indicating that it "would result in a net increase in the deficit totaling $367 billion."

Despite the CBO study, the White House has sought to make the case that the package will be fully funded indicating a deficiency.

Revenue from increased IRS enforcement is not included in the CBO study. The Congressional Budget Office previously anticipated that this would raise $207 billion.

The White House claims that heightened IRS enforcement will produce more money than the CBO estimates, implying that the measure would be fully funded.

Tough road ahead in the Senate

The bill is expected to go through considerable alterations in the Senate, as Democrats who have expressed misgivings about some components of the bill are likely to demand big amendments.

The House would then have to vote on a final version of the bill in the following weeks before it could be sent to Biden's desk.

Senate Democrats will need all 50 members of their caucus to endorse the plan in order to pass it through reconciliation, a budget mechanism that allows them to move the package forward without GOP votes. This makes the work for Democrats much more difficult because no defections are allowed, and passage will need complete unanimity.

Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont, an independent who votes with Democrats, said in a statement following the House vote that the Senate will "strengthen" the plan.

"I thank the House Democrats for banding together to approve the Build Back Better Act. The Senate has the potential to make this legislation really historic. We will pay attention to the public's demands and enhance the law "Sanders sent out a tweet.

Following the House vote, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer stated the Senate "would act as fast as feasible" to take up the bill.

Pelosi dismissed the possibility of big legislative changes in the Senate.

"The House, Senate, and White House collaborated on ninety percent of the law. At the end, there were some disagreements, which we'll address as we move ahead "After the House vote, Pelosi said at a press conference.

"We'll see where we need to, shall we say, reconcile our differences," she continued, "but we'll have a terrific bill at the end of the day."

Democrats pass bill after McCarthy's marathon speech

Democrats have a razor-thin majority in the House, and they can only afford to lose three votes in order to enact legislation. Before the vote, House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told CNN that the only probable Democratic defection was Golden.

Golden told the Bangor Daily News on Thursday night that he opposed the bill because of provisions that would increase the cap on state and local tax deductions, but that he would not rule out supporting it in future votes.

McCarthy halted floor motion with a speech raging against Democrats that lasted until the early hours of Friday morning, prompting the House vote.

McCarthy ascended the House floor at 8:38 p.m. ET on Thursday to begin speaking and did not leave until eight hours and 32 minutes later, the chamber's longest floor speech in history.

Hoyer stated just after midnight that the vote, which had been scheduled for Thursday evening, would instead be held later on Friday.

"He wants to do it in the middle of the night," Hoyer added of McCarthy. "We'll do it throughout the day."

This report and title were modified on Friday to reflect new events.