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Critical time for Congress with Biden’s agenda and debt limit at stake

US Congress returns to session on Monday Faced with a massive agenda and a lack of time, Democrats under President Joe Biden hoping to pass sweeping national programs, fund the government, approve an infrastructure bill and raise the debt ceiling within weeks.

They are faced with several deadlines, iincluding a planned Sept. 27 vote on a $ 1,000 billion Senate-approved infrastructure bill and an Oct. 1 date when the federal government will be strapped for cash fund many of its operations if Congress does not act.

Later in October, the country could exceed its borrowing limit, risking defaulting on the United States’ payment obligations.

Democrats, who control Congress from the narrowest margins, also want to maneuver a $ 3.5 trillion spending package – including proposals for child care, education, housing and green energy – beyond a Republican roadblock. Progressives brag that the plan is the biggest social policy expansion in decades, but senior Democrats acknowledged on Sunday that the bill may need to be cropped to pass.

“It can be $ 3.5 billion, it can be very close to that or maybe closer to something else,” said Representative James Clyburn, the Third House Democrat, told CNN on Sunday. Democrats also want to pass bills on the right to abortion vote, which face a long chance, given strong Republican opposition and a Senate filibuster rule requiring 60 senators. out of 100 agree to advance most laws.

“Did they bite more than they can chew?” Well, yeah, I think they did ” said William Hoagland, senior vice president of the Bipartisan Policy Center think tank.