What Two New Bills Could Mean For the American People

BIANNA GOLODRYGA: How significant is this moment, when you look at that bipartisan $1 trillion deal?

FMR. SEN. HEIDI HEITKAMP (D-ND): This is huge for President Biden. He promised to be a president for everyone. He promised to bring the country together and do bipartisan deals. And the fact that this was so broadly bipartisan, not just marginally bipartisan, is huge. He’s got to get it through the House of Representatives yet. And there is some pushback from more progressive members there. But this is huge. And you can tell how big it is, in terms of a political victory, by how much the former president hates this deal and is threatening Republicans who supported it.

GOLODRYGA: It is quite stunning to see 19 Republicans were able to ignore or overcome President Trump’s constant push for them to not pass this bill. And yet here we are. Can you break down for us what this means for everyday Americans? You’re talking about traditional infrastructure here, roads, bridges, Internet access, broadband access, as well.

HEITKAMP: Well, in my part of the world, which is rural America, the inability to have stable broadband has really diminished economic capacity to grow. And so that’s not true in North Dakota. We have made huge investments here, but throughout the rest of the country, in rural America, this is a huge package and hopefully will bring hope and some economic development to rural areas. But, more importantly, there is — everybody’s concerned about debt and deficit. You can pass on debt by not taking care of your infrastructure. And this is really for that next generation who won’t have to pay now for the bridges, who will inherit infrastructure that is modernized, whether it is in our mass transit and passenger rail, or whether it is just roads and bridges and preparing for the next century. And so I liken this package to what happened when Eisenhower passed the Interstate Highway System in our country. And so this is huge not only for a bipartisan win politically for President Biden, but it is huge for all parts of our country. And that’s why you had 19 Republican senators supporting it. They can’t very well go to a ribbon-cutting for a new bridge unless they actually stood on the floor of the Senate and voted for this bill.