$1T infrastructure bill gets first action as senators dig in

WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer sought to speed up consideration of a nearly $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package, promising that Democrats would work with Republicans to put together amendments for consideration this week. GOP senators cautioned that they need time to digest the massive bill.

Formally called the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, the proposal clocked in at some 2,700 pages after a hurry-up-and-wait rare weekend session. The final product, unveiled late Sunday, was intended to follow the broad outline a bipartisan group of senators had negotiated for weeks with the White House. Schumer has said a final vote could be held “in a matter of days.”

“Let's start voting on amendments," Schumer said as the Senate opened work on Monday. “The longer it takes to finish the bill, the longer we will be here."

A key part of President Joe Biden’s agenda, the bipartisan bill is the first phase of the president's infrastructure plan. It calls for $550 billion in new spending over five years above projected federal levels — one of the most substantial expenditures on the nation’s roads, bridges, waterworks, broadband and the electric grid in years.

The Senate's Republican leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, has sided with those voting to allow debate to proceed, but he has not signaled how he will ultimately vote. He described the bill Monday as a “good and important jumping off point" for a robust, bipartisan amendment process. He warned Democrats against setting “any artificial timetable."

“Infrastructure is exactly the kind of subject that Congress should be able to address across the aisle," McConnell said.

The Senate overwhelmingly approved the first two amendments to the bill late Monday. Each was noncontroversial and...