Senate Republican Says U.S. Infrastructure Bill May Not Pass This Year

"WASHINGTON - The U.S. Senate’s second highest-ranking Republican on Tuesday expressed doubt that Congress will pass legislation to increase infrastructure spending this year, citing time constraints.

Senator John Cornyn, a Texas Republican, told reporters: “I think it will (be) challenging. I certainly would be happy if we could, but we’ve got a lot of things to do, that being one of them, and I don’t know if we will have time to get to that,” according to a transcript from his office.

President Donald Trump wants Congress to approve $200 billion in federal spending over 10 years designed to spur $1.5 trillion in infrastructure spending. But the bill faces strong opposition from Democrats. Under Senate rules, legislation will need the support of at least nine Democrats."

David Shepardson reports for Reuters February 27, 2018.