The months-long Biden administration push to pass a $2 trillion spending bill still has a chance of succeeding, U.S. Secretary of Labour Marty Walsh told Yahoo Finance Editor-in-Chief Andy Serwer on Wednesday.
"I wouldn't say it's dead," Walsh says of the measure. "I would say that it might be on pause a bit, I hope."
Before Christmas, Manchin delivered a $1.8 trillion counteroffer to Biden's bill that included funds for climate change and health care provisions, among other programs. But Manchin later withdrew his support even for that version of the bill, after negotiations fell apart between him and the Biden administration, the
Washington Post reported.
Walsh, the former Democratic mayor of Boston and ex-head of the Boston Building Trades Council, rejected speculation that the effort to pass Build Back Better has failed.
"There is hopefully dialogue [that] will continue as we get into the new year, a little further into the new year," he says.
The Biden-backed version of the bill includes universal pre-K, child care funding, preservation of the expanded child tax credit, and a host of climate change spending that includes tax credits for consumers who transition to clean energy.
Influencers with Andy Serwer: Marty Walsh
In this episode of Influencers, Andy travels to Washington to sit down with U.S. Labour Secretary Marty Walsh as they discuss the health of America’s workforce, Marty’s support for labour unions, and his experience moving from Boston to Biden’s White House.
Versions of the bill have also included a provision long sought by labour advocates that would increase the civil penalties levied if an employer violates workers' rights under federal labour law. The measure also allocates funding for worker training programs.
While portions of the bill would help workers, the opposition to the measure on the part of Manchin does not indicate a lack of support for labour, Walsh said.
"I would not say Sen. Manchin is anti-labour," Walsh says.
"I've had many conversations with the Senator. Certainly, he represents the people in the state in West Virginia, the miners in particular, the unionized that he represents very tough, very strongly."
Speaking to Yahoo Finance, Walsh highlighted what he considers far-reaching benefits of the bill that will boost the economy.
"There are some great provisions in the Build Back Better bill that I'd love to see come into into existence: Pre-kindergarten, childcare, its health care, job, training, money, all of those are important for our economy moving forward," Walsh says.
