Ellzey’s induction into Congress allows Pelosi just three defectors as Democrats look to move on key pieces of their agenda, with the Speaker needing to garner 217 votes to pass or kill bills if all 432 House members — 220 Democrats and 212 Republicans — opt to vote.
Ellzey managed to edge out Trump-backed candidate Susan Wright, the widow of late-Congressman Ron Wright (R-Texas), in the runoff election to represent Texas’ 6 Congressional District earlier this week.
The razor-thin majority narrowing further comes as Democrats hope to pass two substantial infrastructure bills if they make it through the upper chamber.
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President Biden on Sunday predicted it “remains to be seen” whether the language will make it into the sweeping legislation,
While the Senate has struggled to come to a consensus on infrastructure, discrepancies over what language should be included in a reconciliation bill have already begun to emerge within the party, with a handful of progressives threatening to withhold their votes on a bipartisan measure if language providing a pathway to citizenship is not included in a broader package.
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The numbers could shift again during the 117th Congress, with special elections slated to take place in Ohio’s 11th Congressional District, Ohio’s 15th Congressional District and Florida’s 20th Congressional District.
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Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer pressured lawmakers Thursday to reach agreement by next week on a pair of massive domestic spending measures, signaling Democrats’ desire to push ahead aggressively on President Joe Biden’s multi trillion-dollar agenda.
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Schumer, D-N.Y., said he was scheduling a procedural vote for next Wednesday to begin debate on a still-evolving bipartisan infrastructure bill. Senators from both parties, bargaining for weeks, have struggled to reach final agreement on a $1 trillion package of highway, water systems and other public works projects.
Schumer said he also wanted Democratic senators to reach agreement among themselves by then on specific details of a separate 10-year budget blueprint that envisions $3.5 trillion in spending for climate change, education, an expansion of Medicare and more.
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“The time has come to make progress. And we will. We must,” Schumer said on the Senate floor.
“There may be some last-minute discussion as to who, what mechanism is used to pay for each of these items,” Biden said of the two measures during a White House press conference Thursday. “But I believe we will get it done.”
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Lawmakers working on the smaller infrastructure package met Thursday to discuss the details, but chafed at Schumer’s deadline. They indicated that substantial hurdles remain.
“We’re still short on pay-fors,” said Sen. Mike Rounds, R-S.D.
It will take 60 votes to start debating the infrastructure measure because Republicans are expected to use a filibuster — procedural delays — to try killing it.
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