Democratic lawmakers touting, urging passage of undrafted Biden infrastructure jobs plan

Legislation incorporating President Biden's expected $2 trillion infrastructure and jobs plan has not been drafted yet — but that hasn't stopped some Democratic lawmakers from touting the proposal to voters and urging Congress to pass it.

In an email to constituents, Virginia Democratic Rep. Gerry Connolly called Biden's prospective American Jobs Plan "a bold and historic proposal to finally invest in American infrastructure and ensure our country is equipped and ready to build back better than before."

The email included a survey that asked voters if they support Biden's legislative work in progress.

Rhode Island Democratic Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse tweeted on Monday that Congress should pass the bill before the formal legislative language has been drafted.

Nevada Democratic Sen. Jacky Rosen wrote a similar tweet urging passage of Biden's jobs proposal before the embodying legislation has been fully crafted.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she hopes the bill will be drafted by May. The White House released a fact sheet on March 31 outlining some of the spending priorities to be reflected in the $2 trillion bill when it is ultimately written. On Monday, the White House released a list of projects that the plan will target on the state level.

On Sunday, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the American Jobs Plan would create about 2.7 million jobs over a 10-year period. As Just the News previously estimated, the cost to taxpayers per job could be an estimated $666,000 to $740,000. 

Democrats will "most likely" use budget reconciliation again to pass the infrastructure and jobs plan, California Democrat Rep. Raul Ruiz told Just the News Tuesday.

Democrats previously used budget reconciliation for Biden's $1.9 trillion stimulus bill as a way to avoid the legislative filibuster in the 50-50 Senate. The legislation was signed into law last month.

"I do think that it will most likely be a budget reconciliation process that includes infrastructure and a plan, but an infrastructure plan that is responsible, with climate change," said Ruiz, a member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee. "In other words, do we want to move our country massively with manufacturing opportunities with green and renewable energy uses, which we can, or do we want to do it with the same old fossil fuel combustion that is harming our climate and harming our earth and harming our health?"