The president of the United States (USA), Joe Biden , acknowledged this Saturday that he feels “frustrated” by the tensions within his party, but considered that this is part of governing and assured that he will fight until the end to approve his economic agenda in Congress.
Everybody is frustrated . That is part of governing, being frustrated, “said the president in statements to the press before leaving for his home in Wilmington (Delaware), where he will spend the weekend.
Biden, however, was once again convinced that the leftist and centrist sectors of his party will be able to agree to approve the two main axes of his agenda: the infrastructure plan of 1.2 trillion dollars and the social spending package. which, in principle, is valued at 3.5 trillion .
“There is no reason why we cannot pass those two laws,” said Biden, who also said, “I think we can get it done .”
In response to questions from the press, the president described himself as a “realistic” person, and recalled that he knows Congress well because for 36 years he represented the state of Delaware in the Senate. I was in the Senate for years. I know how laws are made, “he asserted.
Biden considered that his agenda has the support of the American people and said that next week he will travel to the United States to promote the different programs that he wants to approve, from an expansion of health coverage and public education to aid for families with lower incomes.
“I think that when the American people know what is within (those laws), then we will succeed in moving it forward,” he argued.
The president met this Friday with the Democrats in Congress behind closed doors and, although an agreement was not reached, the appointment served to give the party more time to continue debating.
The centrist sector had lobbied the Democratic leadership for the House of Representatives to approve the $ 1.2 trillion infrastructure plan on Thursday; but the progressives rebelled and threatened to overthrow him if concrete commitments were not reached on the social plan.
That package, which contains Biden’s great social policies, has not yet been approved by any of the chambers and its content is what is right now causing tensions within the party.
One of the big questions is the amount of funds that will be allocated to that social plan, in which the progressives wanted to invest between 6 and 10 trillion dollars, but which is currently valued at 3.5 trillion, a figure still high for some centrists.
In the meeting with his party, Biden spoke about the possibility of lowering the figure to between 1.9 and 2.3 billion, several sources who were at the meeting told the Político newspaper.
The internal war within the Democratic party comes at a time when Biden’s approval rating has dropped in the polls and with little more than a year left until the November 2022 legislative elections, in which the Democrats could lose the vote. they have a narrow majority in the Senate and the Lower House .
In a statement, the White House spokeswoman, Jen Psak i, indicated this Saturday that the president will continue to be immersed in the negotiations while he spends the weekend in Delaware and announced that next week he will meet again with members of his party.
