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One of President Donald Trump’s close allies in the Senate says it’s time for new investments in roads and bridges, as Washington mulls another round of aid to cushion the blow of the coronavirus pandemic.
“I want to do infrastructure,” South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham told CNN on Wednesday, adding that he’d said to the president: “This is the time. We got it teed up. This is the time to go big. … It really is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to give a facelift to the country.”
Graham, as CNN noted, isn’t alone, with two committee chairmen — Sens. Roy Blunt of Missouri and Roger Wicker of Mississippi — wanting to move on a infrastructure package to pump money into roads, bridges and transportation projects.
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, meanwhile, has so far said Congress should wait to pass another aid package. The Senate is planning to recess on Thursday for a weeklong Memorial Day break.
House Democrats are seeking a package that includes not just transportation projects but also health centers, water systems and broadband internet. Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said the proposed package could follow the framework of a $760 billion plan rolled out in January.
Trump has previously been supportive of an infrastructure spending, calling for a $2 trillion package.
Also read:Trump, Pelosi see ‘Phase 4’ coronavirus package that includes infrastructure spending.
Speaking at a Thursday event sponsored by the Hill, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said Trump has been focused on infrastructure since his campaign and that the subject is “something that Congress is going to need to look at.”
“I’d say whether we do it as part of the coronavirus bill or whether we do it separately, that’s something that is on the president’s agenda,” Mnuchin said.
Victor Reklaitis contributed to this story.
