Biden is pitching a big infrastructure plan, but Republicans already panned it as going too far – USA TODAY

WASHINGTON President Joe Biden on Wednesday will take to the lectern inPittsburgha city known for steel, factories and thetowering bridges crisscrossing its downtown to pitch thesecond signature proposal in his young presidency, a massiveinfrastructure and jobs plan that would cost $2 trillion.

But before Biden even offered specifics of his aims to fix the nation's roads, bridges and railways, Republicans he'll need to work with in Congress panned it, claiming it goes too far beyond traditional infrastructure spending andcomparingits climate aspectsto the Green New Deal.

Republicans arguethe package should be limited to transportation, broadband internet and other basics, not green energy like Biden has touted since he was a candidate. Biden doesn't want to just fix roads, Republicans warn, he wants to upend American life.

They've also balked at raising taxes long a sticking point for Republicans to get behind big-ticket Democratic programs. To find bipartisan support, the president will have to convince skepticalRepublicans to support an increase of the corporate tax rateto pay for infrastructure and a wide-range of other spending.

These dynamics foreshadowa possible repeat of Biden's first majorlegislative victory earlier this month,when he won approval of a$1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief package, the American Rescue Plan, without a single Republican supporter in Congress.

"What taxes are the Republicans who want infrastructure spending for?"saidMatt Grossman, who heads the Institute for Public Policy and Social Research at Michigan State University. "I think the answer is not many. And if so, they won't be ones that Democrats are likely to support. So that, right off the top, limits the potential for bipartisanship pretty fundamentally."

More: Biden putting final touches on potential $3 trillion economic, infrastructure package as Buttigieg heads to the Hill

Biden is set to unveil his long-discussed infrastructure plan in his Pittsburgh speech. White House press secretary Jen Psaki said his proposal in addition to addressing roads, bridges, railways and broadband willincludespending onmanufacturing, research and development and"the caregiving economy."She said the president also has a "plan to pay for it," which he will unveil.

White House press secretary Jen Psaki speaks during a press briefing at the White House on Tuesday.Evan Vucci, AP

The White House has billedthe proposalas a way to create "good-paying union jobs" and a "first step" toward economic recovery amid the coronavirus pandemic. A second proposal in Biden's "Build Back Better" agenda addressing health care, education andchild care is expected in April.

To build their case forthe large infusion of domestic spending,theWhite House saidthe U.S. ranks 13th globally in infrastructure quality, down from fifth in 2002, and significantly lags rival superpower China in infrastructure spending. More than one-third of America's bridges need repairs and one in every five highways are in poor condition.

"We know that 80%or more of people in this country, Democrats and Republicans, supportinvesting in infrastructure,"Psaki said.

YetRepublican lawmakershave spent recent days fine-tuningtheir attacks.

Were hearing the next few months might bring a so-called 'infrastructure' proposal that may actually be a Trojan horse for massive tax hikes and other job-killing left-wing policies," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., said from the Senate floor last week.

More: Republicans tell Buttigieg that Biden's infrastructure bill should focus on roads, rail, ports - not climate or social justice

His office seized on recent comments from Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y.,likeningthe proposal to the Green New Deal, a sweeping environmental effort pushed by Democrats to fight climate change. "Sold as an infrastructure plan," warned Scott Sloofman, a top McConnellaide, it "actually intends to reshape the U.S. economy and other parts of American life."

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va.J. Scott Applewhite, AP

Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R.-W.Va., the leading Republican on the Senate's Environment and Public Works Committee, said she's "very disappointed" the plan could includesocialprograms in addition to infrastructure.

"They're terming it 'social infrastructure.' Never heard that before," Capito said, predicting a hard legislative fight. "I think we need to talk to the American people and say, 'Is this what you envision with infrastructure? Arethese job creators? Are were-engineering our own social fabric here with a 50-vote majority?'"

House Republicans warnedBiden's transportation secretary, Pete Buttigieg, last week that any plan that strays from core transportation priorities to one that tackles climate change and social justice won't get GOP support.

"I don't think the bill can grow into a multi-trillion-dollar catch-all," said Missouri Rep. Sam Graves, the top Republican on the House Transportation & Infrastructure Committee. "A transportation bill needs to be a transportation bill, not a Green New Deal. It needs to be about roads and bridges."

Former President Donald Trump repeatedly promised an infrastructure package but never delivered one.

Democrats could choose to pass the infrastructure legislation in the Senate through budget reconciliation just like they did Biden's COVID-19 relief bill known as theAmerican Rescue Plan which would require justa simple majority in the evenly split chamberand therefore no Republican votes.

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg attends an event titled Transforming Rail in Virginia at the Amtrak-VRE station Tuesday in Alexandria, Virginia.Win McNamee, Getty Images

More:A gas tax? A mileage tax? Biden wary of user fees to pay for roads, bridges and highways

In an interview Monday on CNN, Buttigieg said he think there's "a tremendous opportunity nowto havebipartisan support for a big, bold vision of infrastructure," arguingAmericans "don't need a lot of selling" on the issue.He also defended the inclusion of green investments in the infrastructure package.

"You can't separate the climate part from this vision," he said, "because every road we fix, every bridge we build, we can either do it in a way that's better for the climate or worse for the climate.Why wouldn't we want to be creating these jobs in a way that's better for the climate?"

Buttigieg said he thinks the administration can get Republican votes on infrastructure in Congress, adding "we're going to work with them to try shape it in a way that earns as much support as possible."

"At the the same time," he said,"the American people can't wait."

To pay for the sweeping package,Biden wants to make large corporations pay more taxes. According to an administration official, hewill propose increasing the corporate tax rate to 28% resetting to the its level before passage of President Donald Trump's tax cuts in 2017 and overhauling how the U.S. taxes multinational corporations by increasing the minimum tax on U.S. corporations to 21%.

The White House this weekeliminated user fees, such as an increase to the gas tax or road tax, to pay for the infrastructure plan.

"People might have different ideas about how to pay for it," Psaki said. "We're open to hearing them. So hopefully people will bring forward ideas."

Clouds hang over the skyline of downtown Pittsburgh, the Rachel Carson Bridge, and the Allegheny River on Friday, March 18, 2016.Gene J. Puskar, AP

A poll this month from The Hill-HarrisX found 54%of American voters believe an infrastructure package should be a priority right now for the federal government, compared to 46%who said other issues should. Sixty percent of Democrats, 54%of independentsand 46% of Republicans agreedinfrastructure should be prioritized.

"To have a bill like this that can generate jobs, help improve transportation, and infrastructure in general is a win-win all around," saidDavid Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center. "Paying for it, obviously, is going to be the sticking point for Republicans."

Green energy investments are also popular among thepublic, according to Grossman. And while polls generally find opposition to raising the federal tax on gas to pay for infrastructure, the public gives higher marks to raising taxes forcorporations and higher-income individuals

"In that sense, this developing bill does have the potential to at least start out with bipartisan support in the public," Grossmansaid.

Such a scenariowould be also reflect thedynamics of Biden's COVID-19 relief bill,which multiple polls found was backed by more than 70% of Americans.

But as Biden learned, that doesn't mean Republicans in Congress will jump on board.

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., called an infrastructure package the the best chance for Republicans and Democrats to do something together, saying Everybody needs roads and bridges and ports.

But he added: We just want to make sure its related to infrastructure.

Reach Joey Garrison on Twitter @joeygarrison.

Northam signs agreements for major rail expansion

Gov. Ralph Northam has finalized agreements with executives at Amtrak, CSX and Virginia Railway Express (VRE) that pave the way for a $3.7 billion dollar rail expansion in Virginia during the next decade. (March 30)

AP

Published8:52 pm UTC Mar. 30, 2021Updated9:27 am UTC Mar. 31, 2021

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Biden is pitching a big infrastructure plan, but Republicans already panned it as going too far - USA TODAY