Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) doesn't think the GOP's $928 billion infrastructure counteroffer is "serious," she told MSNBC on Thursday. "It's not real."
Warren criticized the proposal, which comes after President Biden's initial compromise of $1.7 trillion, saying it moves around already-allocated money and sharply cuts Biden's proposed $174 billion for green infrastructure, namely electric vehicles. She also believes the pared-down offer leaves women "behind," in that it excludes money for care-economy measures included in Biden's American Families Plan, Insider notes.
Senate Republicans' $928 billion counter offer includes $506 billion for roads and bridges (only $4 billion of which is allocated toward electric vehicles), $98 billion for public transit, and $65 billion for broadband, among other allocations, reports CNBC. GOP negotiators noted in a letter to the White House that "policies unrelated to physical infrastructure do not fit in this package" and should instead be addressed in "separate legislation." Said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) to CNBC's Squawk Box: "We can't seem to get the White House to agree on a definition or a scope of infrastructure that matches where we think it is, and that's core, physical infrastructure."
In a statement, White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki called the GOP's efforts "encouraging," but added that the updated plan still "provides no substantial new funds for critical job-creating needs."
The two parties have not yet agreed how best to pay for the package, NPR reports. Biden will further discuss infrastructure with Republican senators next week.