Senate approves sweeping $3.5 trillion budget plan after punchy all-night 'vote-a-rama'

Less than 24 hours after the Senate approved a bipartisan $1 trillion infrastructure package, 69-30, senators adopted a $3.5 trillion budget blueprint on a 50-49 party-line vote early Wednesday morning. "The Democratic budget will bring a generational transformation for how our economy works for average Americans," Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said after the vote.
Approval of the budget plan came after a ritual known as "a 'vote-a-rama,' a nonstop parade of messaging amendments that often becomes a painful all-night ordeal," The Associated Press reports. "This time, the Senate had held more than 40 votes by the time it approved the measure at around 4 a.m. EDT, more than 14 hours after the procedural wretchedness began." Most of the amendments were offered by Republicans to trip up vulnerable Democrats, a point Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) emphasized in a sardonic, very animated endorsement of a proposal by Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-Ala.) to punish municipalities that "defund the police."
With the budget outline passed, lawmakers will now have to fill it in with legislation to expand Medicare, provide free community college and universal pre-kindergarten, enact paid family leave, create a Civilian Climate Corps, extend expanded child tax credits, reform immigration laws, and other priority items on President Biden's agenda. The final price tag will be paid for mainly by rolling back the GOP's 2017 tax cuts, strengthening IRS tax compliance enforcement, and allowing the government to negotiate lower drug prices.
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.
Wednesday's vote unlocks the budget reconciliation process that will allow Senate Democrats to pass their package with no Republican votes, if moderate and more liberal Democrats can agree on the final legislation. Both the budget blueprint and bipartisan infrastructure bill also still have to pass the House, where progressives are insisting they pass together or not at all.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Quiz of The Week: 26 July – 1 August
Have you been paying attention to The Week's news?
-
Uttar Pradesh: from a once-in-a-generation festival to tiger tracking in an ancient forest
The Week Recommends Soak up the state's rich culture on one of Explorations Company's specially curated tours
-
The Week Unwrapped: Could AI replace catwalk models?
Podcast Plus, should countries sue each other for climate damage? And what does Grand Theft Auto 6 tell us about the video game industry?
-
Harris rules out run for California governor
Speed Read The 2024 Democratic presidential nominee ended months of speculation about her plans for the contest
-
Trump sets new tariff rates as deadline nears
Speed Read New tariff rates for South Korea, Brazil and India announced
-
Ghislaine Maxwell: angling for a Trump pardon
Talking Point Convicted sex trafficker's testimony could shed new light on president's links to Jeffrey Epstein
-
Senate confirms Trump loyalist Bove to top court
Speed Read The president's former criminal defense lawyer was narrowly approved to earn a lifetime seat
-
Ghislaine Maxwell offers testimony for immunity
Speed Read The convicted sex trafficker offered to testify to Congress about her relationship with late boyfriend Jeffrey Epstein
-
Judge halts GOP defunding of Planned Parenthood
Speed Read The Trump administration can't withhold Medicaid funds from Planned Parenthood, said the ruling
-
Trump contradicts Israel, says 'starvation' in Gaza
Speed Read The president suggests Israel could be doing more to alleviate the suffering of Palestinians
-
Trump executive order targets homeless
Speed Read It will now be easier for states and cities to remove homeless people from the streets