AOC's latest comments show how 'complicated' infrastructure bill passage will be

The Senate is growing optimistic about passing its nearly $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill soon. The legislative text should be completed Sunday, Sens. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) indicated, and Manchin said he's hopeful the process can finish up by the end of the week. But that won't necessarily guarantee it gets to President Biden's desk.
As Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) pointed out on Sunday's edition of State of the Union on CNN, the House needs to sign off on the package, as well, and she and her fellow progressive Democrats may wind up blocking it if the Senate is unable to also secure a larger budget proposal via reconciliation. "We have to hold on to that bargain," Ocasio-Cortez told host Jake Tapper, adding that she's also concerned about some of the pay-fors in the bipartisan bill. "Bipartisan doesn't always mean that it's in the interest of the public good," she said.
PunchBowl News' Amanda Palmer noted that the congresswoman's comments underscore "how complicated the next steps for infrastructure are going to be — even beyond what happens in the Senate."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Tim is a staff writer at The Week and has contributed to Bedford and Bowery and The New York Transatlantic. He is a graduate of Occidental College and NYU's journalism school. Tim enjoys writing about baseball, Europe, and extinct megafauna. He lives in New York City.
-
The state of Britain's Armed Forces
The Explainer Geopolitical unrest and the unreliability of the Trump administration have led to a frantic re-evaluation of the UK's military capabilities
By The Week UK
-
Anti-anxiety drug has a not-too-surprising effect on fish
Under the radar The fish act bolder and riskier
By Devika Rao, The Week US
-
Sudoku medium: April 21, 2025
The Week's daily medium sudoku puzzle
By The Week Staff
-
Judge threatens Trump team with criminal contempt
Speed Read James Boasberg attempts to hold the White House accountable for disregarding court orders over El Salvador deportation flights
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Biden slams Trump's Social Security cuts
Speed Read In his first major public address since leaving office, Biden criticized the Trump administration's 'damage' and 'destruction'
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
El Salvador refuses to return US deportee
Speed Read President Nayib Bukele of El Salvador said he would not send back the unlawfully deported Kilmar Ábrego García
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Tariffs: Time for Congress to take over?
Feature Senators introduce a bill that would require any new tariffs to be approved by Congress
By The Week US
-
Trump says electronics tariff break won't last
Speed Read The tariff exemptions on smartphones, laptops and other electronic devices are temporary, the administration says
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
Man charged in arson attack on Pennsylvania's Shapiro
Speed Read Governor Josh Shapiro and his family were sleeping when someone set fire to his Harrisburg mansion
By Peter Weber, The Week US
-
White House pushes for oversight of Columbia University
Speed Read The Trump administration is considering placing the school under a consent decree
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US
-
Supreme Court backs wrongly deported migrant
Speed Read The Trump administration must 'facilitate' the return of wrongfully deported migrant Kilmar Ábrego García from El Salvador, Supreme Court says
By Peter Weber, The Week US