Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif. 15th District) is urging his Republican colleagues to get onboard with President Joe Biden's sweeping $2.3 trillion infrastructure plan, saying that the bill addresses many issues that plagued the country even before the onset of the coronavirus pandemic.
"We know that as Americans get back to work, as the economy reopens, we'll be reminded of our crumbling infrastructure," Swalwell told Cheddar.
"Americans want to spend less time in their cars and more time with their families, so that means investing in rails, additional highways, roads, bridges, tunnels."
Swalwell also noted the potential for broadband expansion under the Biden proposal, particularly for students who have lacked access to adequate internet service during the establishment of distance learning.
The president's infrastructure plan calls for a hike in corporate taxes from 21 percent to 28 percent, a move that many Republicans have come out against though the proposal is still below the 35 percent rate that existed before the Trump administration. Swalwell said the GOP has to be "a part of this process" and hopes some are willing to cross the aisle for the benefit of the country at large.
"President Biden ran on a uniting-the-country agenda, and he is reaching across the aisle," Swalwell said. "And I hope he will find partners that will work with him."
"I'm confident, on our side, in the House, we will do what is needed to get done. I hope that on the Republican side in the Senate, that they can achieve 60 votes, meaning at least 10 Republicans cross the aisle for the infrastructure needs that are there."
In hopes of enticing Republican lawmakers to support Biden's plan, the California representative also pointed to the return of earmarks or "member-directed spending," which allow lawmakers to direct funds to specific projects or groups in their districts. Earmarks were temporarily banned by each party in 2011 after President Obama promised to veto any bill containing them during his State of the Union address.
Senate Republicans voted to permanently ban the practice in 2019 but have shown signs they may be willing to re-embrace them, according to The Hill.
Swalwell noted that not only are Democratic lawmakers supporting the American Jobs Plan, their constituents are also backing it.
"I just think good policy is good politics, and if we keep this country open, if the unemployment rate is low, and the economy grows, like Goldman Sachs predicted at 8 percent by the end of the year, I think Americans will want to return to responsible governance to Washington come 2022," he said.
Markets were pointing mostly lower to end the week as investors reacted to the threat of a Covid resurgence in Europe. Jeff Schulze, Investment Strategist at ClearBridge Investments joined Cheddar's Opening Bell to discuss Friday's pre-market activity.
A federal judge tossed out a lawsuit against financial services platform Robinhood following the meme stock saga that swept the investment world. The judge said it found no wrongdoing on Robinhood's part after the platform halted trading on popular meme stocks Gamestop and AMC.
Jill and Carlo are back to cover the latest in the Rittenhouse trial, new information on the origins of Covid, return-to-office and more.
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The U.S. Justice Department has filed a lawsuit against Uber after it was discovered that disabled people were being disproportionately affected by extra “wait time” fees. Attorney Jonathan Bell joined Cheddar to discuss.
Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko has been accused by the EU of manufacturing a migration crisis along his border with Poland. But, even as tensions appear to be stabilizing at the moment, Ali Noorani, the president and CEO of National Immigration Forum and the host of the "Only in America" podcast spoke to Cheddar about the ongoing danger to the migrants who hail from countries like Iraq and Afghanistan. "What is going to happen to folks who are in Belarus who came from these countries? Is Lukashenko going to provide them asylum and protection in Belarus, or are they going to continue to be political pawns in a geopolitical battle," he said. "Real people's lives are being put at great risk."
A group of crypto investors has come together to raise millions of dollars in the hopes of owning a rare piece of the U.S. Constitution. According to the crypto group, "Constitution DAO" It is time to put the constitution in the hands of the people. CEO and Founder of Metaversal Yossi Hasson, joined Cheddar to discuss more.
Polarization is among the defining traits of American politics in the 21st century. Sometimes it seems like the only thing we can all agree on is the fact that we don't really agree on anything. But those divisions don't just stop at whether you vote red or blue.
A new survey from the Pew Research Center finds that rather than just two political buckets, we have nine. The "2021 political typology" as it's called distinguishes between different ideological subsets in the Democratic and Republican party. It encompasses everyone from the loudest revolutionary lefties, to the loudest insurrection apologists on the right.
Andrew Daniller, research associate at the Pew Research Center, joins None of the Above to discuss.
Tanya Snyder, transportation reporter at Politico, joins None of the Above with J.D. Durkin to discuss the bipartisan infrastructure law, what it means for the electric vehicle industry and whether Democrats will be able to capitalize on the legislative victory ahead of the 2022 midterms.
Heading into 2022, the eyes of political nerds like us are fixed on statehouses across the country. State legislatures are in the process of taking the data from the 2020 census and using it to draw new congressional districts. The process has major implications for midterms, as Republicans could retake the majority just by gerrymandering enough seats into their column. In Maryland, state level Democrats are considering several maps, one of which would completely draw out the only Republican from the state in Congress.
Bruce DePuyt, senior reporter at Maryland Matters, and Helen Brewer, legal analyst at Princeton's Electoral Innovation Lab, join Cheddar Politics to discuss.
