President Biden came into office on a promise of unity, and with just a 50-50 Senate and a 222-213 House. But the administration’s most ambitious initiatives were those that they sought to pass Congress with only Democratic votes.
Much of the $3.3 trillion in new spending that the Biden administration passed through Congress was in the $1.9 trillion COVID stimulus package adopted two months into Biden’s presidency. But according to a new analysis by The New York Times, nearly $1.5 trillion in other new spending has also been approved:
- Climate: $722 billion sought, $509 billion approved
- Transportation: $389 billion sought, $272 billion approved
- Utilities: $249 billion sought, $152 billion approved
- Manufacturing: $502 billion sought, $93 billion approved
Still, some of Biden’s most ambitious proposals went nowhere:
- American Families Plan: $1.1 trillion sought, $0 approved
- New healthcare spending and subsidies: $563 billion sought, $0 approved
- New education spending: $446 billion sought, $0 approved
It’s worth noting that the major successes were bipartisan, including the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and the CHIPS and Science Act. The proposals that failed entirely were single-party wish lists that catered to the far left of the President’s party.
The lesson: Working across the aisle gets things done. Join the No Labels movement.
