"I do think it's important to get done what we can right now," Schor said during a call hosted by White House officials. He added that he believes both packages are important for the country.
But "if it's a matter of passing the infrastructure bill and continuing to debate on the second bill and getting that done also, that's OK. We need to push through what we can get through and continue to move the ball forward."
The local leaders' call to Congress comes days after some progressive Democrats have continued to insist they won't vote for the infrastructure bill until the broader Build Back Better bill is ready and can get enough votes. House progressives signaled over the weekend that they would be likely to back both bills if they came up for a vote this week.
"I totally agree with Mayor Schor," said Allen-Richardson. "We need it done now, and however it can be done we need to get it done, and done quickly. Infrastructure is so important."
Duggan suggested the same: "It's time for Congress to just pass an infrastructure bill," he said, noting that multiple presidents of both parties have tried for years to pass a major investment in physical infrastructure.
"It is so frustrating. Here in Detroit the roads and bridges are in terrible shape," he said. "The president has made the point repeatedly that we have to prove in America that we can lead in the world and not lag behind. It's time."
The bipartisan infrastructure package would allot Michigan $7.3 billion for highways, $563 million for bridges and $1 billion for public transit, according to White House estimates. It would also include $1 billion for the federal Great Lakes cleanup program, $7.5 billion nationally for a program to support building out an electric vehicle charging network and $10 billion nationally to help cleanup certain toxic per- and polyfluoroalkyl (PFAS) chemicals.
It passed the Senate in August but has remained in limbo as Democrats hashed out details of the social safety net and climate package that would enact the rest of Biden's agenda. Originally estimated at $3.5 trillion, policymakers have since slashed it to $1.75 trillion after opposition from centrist Democratic Senators Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona.
However, an electoral defeat on Tuesday in Virginia's gubernatorial race has some Democrats spooked, providing new motivation to move ahead on a proposal. While House leadership insists they can pass both packages by the end of the week, though some policy points still remain in flux.
Reps. Rashida Tlaib, D-Detroit, and Andy Levin, D-Bloomfield Township, have been among those who have insisted the two bills travel through Congress in tandem.
Several other Michigan Democrats have thrown their support behind Biden's new $1.75 trillion framework for the social policy and climate package.
Those who said they'd back both pieces of legislation included Reps. Dan Kildee, D-Flint Township; Brenda Lawrence, D-Southfield; and Haley Stevens, D-Rochester Hills, as well as Sens. Debbie Stabenow, D-Lansing, and Gary Peters, D-Bloomfield Township.
Rep. Elissa Slotkin, D-Holly, has urged Congressional leadership to take up and pass the bipartisan package for weeks and has not said publicly whether she supports Democrats' package as she reviews the text.
Only one Michigan Republican lawmaker, Rep. Fred Upton of St. Joseph, has publicly committed to vote yes on the bipartisan infrastructure package, stressing the poor condition of roads and bridges in Michigan and the need to expand rural broadband.
Many other GOP lawmakers have complained about being left out of the budget reconciliation process that Democrats are using to move the larger social spending package through the Senate with a simple majority.
©2021 The Detroit News, Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
