President Joe Biden and his Democrats are close to a final deal on his multi-trillion spending packing of social programs with an agreement possibly coming as soon Tuesday even as the final details of the legislation remain a mystery.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi told reporters on Capitol Hill that the legislation is 90 per cent finished.
'There's not much more time,' Pelosi said. 'We have to have decisions largely today. A little bit into tomorrow. So we can proceed.'
And Rep. Joyce Beatty, chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, came out of White House meeting with President Joe Biden to say moderates and progressives in the party are close to agreement even as she declined
'We are very close,' she said.
And Rep. Jackie Spiers, who was in the White House meeting, nodded yes when reporters asked if a deal could come Tuesday.
Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, center, Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, standing with other House Democrats, talks to reporters outside the West Wing of the White House after a meeting with President Biden
President Joe Biden and his Democrats are close to a final deal on his multi-trillion spending packing of social programs with an agreement possibly coming as soon Tuesday
But the same issues remain unresolved between the two wings of the party: climate programs, Medicaid expansion, paid family leave, immigration and taxes.
And there is no sign of agreement. And there are no details on what the final version of those provisions will look like. The outstanding questions: how many weeks of paid family leave; will there be a Medicaid expansion for hearing aids, dental and eyeglasses; what will cliamte change programs look like; and how will the legislation be paid for.
'Admittedly, I'm not going to get into the specifics because we're not 100% there yet,' Beatty conceded.
But Biden, Pelosi and top Democrats leaders have honed their sales pitch as the clock ticks toward the president's trip to Europe on Thursday. He has made it clear to lawmakers he'd like a deal completed before he leaves.
Leadership is now reminding lawmakers that even if this bill doesn't have every item on their wish list, it's better than nothing.
'The president talked about how transformational this bill will be. And that even though we may not have everything that we want in the bill that this will lay the groundwork for so much relief for working families in America,' Rep. Judy Chu said after the meeting with Biden.
'He pledged to continue on whatever is not in the bill. He pledged to continue working on that till the end of his term,' she added.
The lawmakers came out of their meeting carrying candy boxes of M&Ms and hershey kisses with the White House logo.
On Capitol Hill talks are continuing with members of the White House's legislative team working with lawmakers, particularly moderate Senators Joe Manchin and Kyrsten Sinema.
But signs of frustration are showing.
'The Senate needs to start saying yes or no on issues and stop f***ing talking,' Rep. Jimmy Gomez told Politico.
However, vast differences among Democrats remain over the basic contours of the sweeping proposal and how to pay for it. It's now estimated to total at least $1.75 trillion over 10 years, and could still be more.
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Biden´s preference was still to have a deal in hand before departing, but she acknowledged that might not happen, forcing him to keep working on the package from afar.
'There are phones on Air Force One and also in Europe,' Psaki told reporters.
Resolving the revenue side is key as the Democrats scale back what had been a $3.5 trillion plan, insisting all the new spending will be fully paid for and not pile onto the debt. Biden vows any new taxes would hit only the wealthy, those earning more than $400,000 a year, or $450,000 for couples.
The White House had to rethink its tax strategy after Sinema objected to her party's initial proposal
