Congress

Democrats want to give Americans the biggest tax hike in 53 years, just as the country tries to recover from a once-in-a-century pandemic.

A dark money group funded by a Swiss billionaire foreign national is spending heavily to lobby moderate Democrats to support voting rights legislation that would strengthen a landmark civil rights-era voting law, filings show.

President Biden is slated to hold a series of meetings on Wednesday with Democratic lawmakers, including party leaders, as he attempts to head off an intraparty war between moderates and progressives that could derail his $4 trillion economic agenda.

Members of Congress face one of the most crucial legislative periods in decades, with issues including the $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill, the debt limit and the looming government shutdown.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer will meet with President Biden on Wednesday at the White House to discuss both the infrastructure package and the $3.5 trillion reconciliation bill that has been the source of contention in Washington.

Transportation planners are looking for ways to improve their travel forecasts as Congress debates spending billions of dollars on new infrastructure projects, the kind of roads and bridges that get approved based on optimistic cost underestimates.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, D-Md., said Tuesday he would introduce a standalone bill to provide $1 billion in funding for Israel’s “Iron Dome” missile defense system after a coalition of progressive Democrats blocked its inclusion in a sweeping emergency spending package.

House Democratic leaders on Tuesday removed $1 billion for Israel's Iron Dome defense system from a spending bill that will avert a government shutdown after backlash from progressive lawmakers.

Despite a wide gulf between moderate and progressive Democrats, at least one top Democrat says they have the votes to pass both the infrastructure bill and the reconciliation bill.

The House could act as early as this week, as Democrats rush to avert a government shutdown and avoid a debt default, while simultaneously crafting a partisan $3.5 trillion tax and spending bill.