MNI BRIEF: Schumer Says Bold Biden Plan is Top Goal

U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer Wednesday promised "to look for bipartisanship wherever we can," but said Democrats would prepare pathways to move President Biden's spending plans to pass the Congress using budget reconciliation.

"We have no choice but to move forward," Schumer told reporters. "We much prefer to do it with them [Republicans]. Let's hope they'll do it with us, but big, bold action is our number one goal, number one," he said, noting budget reconciliation as an option, which would allow Democrats to pass spending plans with a simple majority rather than 60 votes.

The White House earlier Wednesday released Biden's USD1.8 trillion "American Families Plan," a proposal spanning a decade and covering areas such as child care, paid leave, education and healthcare, and would be funded by tax increases on the wealthy. When paired with the USD2.25 trillion "American Jobs Plan" released in late March, Biden's spending plans come to over USD4 trillion.