Sens. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) and John Hoeven (RN.D.) told President Biden on Monday that they were opposed to raising the corporate tax rate to pay its proposed $ 2.25 trillion infrastructure package, according to people familiar with the matter. with the case.
Why it matters: The opposition of Romney and Hoeven, the only two Republican senators at Monday’s bipartisan Oval Office meeting, indicates that Biden will find it difficult to get any Republican support to pay for his proposals for spending on roads, bridges and health care by increase corporate rates.
- The White House is still looking for evidence there are Republicans willing to submit some of the president’s proposals, including Biden’s plan to raise the corporate rate from 21% to 28%.
- If administration officials conclude that Republican senators are only interested in drawing red lines, they may be more likely to follow a purely partisan path and seek 50 Democratic votes in the Senate to pass a bill through the budget reconciliation process. to accept.
- At the beginning of the meeting, the president himself told reporters: “I am willing to compromise, willing to see what we can do and what we can come together on.”
What they say: While both Romney and Hoeven are in favor of an infrastructure package, they believe they want to see a more targeted payment mechanism – gas taxes and user fees – to help fund individual projects.
- “There is broad support for infrastructure, and I believe a dual bill is possible, but we need to find agreement to put these updates in a purposeful way that does not increase taxes,” Hoeven said in a statement.
- “I know my Democratic friends are more likely to seek out the general taxpayer income fund to pick up the bill, but my tendency is more towards the people who actually use a facility to pay those for it,” I know. said Romney. reporters on Capitol Hill.
Behind the scenes: Biden began the meeting by speaking to Angus King, Maine’s senator, an independent Democrat who was a former public television host.
- King made sure everyone in the room had the opportunity to air their views and explain their views.
- Romney acknowledged so much and praised the president. “He was in listening mode and was gracious in asking our respective views,” he said.
The conclusion: Negotiations between the Republicans of the Senate and the White House are just beginning, but their opening positions are miles away.
- The great distance gives partisan Democrats more room to argue against Biden that he should follow an agreement through reconciliation and not bother to bring Republicans together.