Invoking the threat of China was enough to get some bipartisan legislation through the gridlocked Senate
Photo: Bloomberg via Getty Images On Tuesday, Democrats’ negotiations on a bipartisan infrastructure bill fell apart for good, as Republicans failed to budge past $330 billion in new investment — far from the $1 trillion that President Biden planned for the effort which effectively doubles as his climate bill. In another blow to Biden’s agenda earlier in the week, West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin — whose state represents around 0.5 percent of the U.S.
Lawmakers authorized the lion’s share of the money under the new legislation, totaling $190 billion, for a major rethinking of federal science, technology and research spending. They created a new technology division within the National Science Foundation to focus on emerging areas including artificial intelligence.
The broad nature of the bill also opened the door for lawmakers to push some of their pet projects, raising alarms among both parties. Senators secured earlier in the debate a prohibition on the sale of shark fins, for example, and a provision requiring online merchants to reveal the country of origin behind the goods they sell — except in the case of cooked king crab.
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