The first big trip for the new year for President Joe Biden is expected to see quite the odd partner, Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-KY).
An upcoming event slated to take place this coming Wednesday out in Kentucky is planning to focus on the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure package which was signed into law by President Biden late last year, as reported by CNN. This new Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act has been highlighted as one of Biden’s very first major legislative wins during his time in office.
Biden is expected to see guests on this trip along with McConnell such as Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), Governor Andy Beshear (D-KY), Gov. Mike DeWine (R-OH), as explained by the White House.
This soon-to-happen event is expected to be bipartisan and is planned to happen in the Cincinnati area leaning more towards the Kentucky side of the area, as explained by the Associated Press. This turn of events comes in the wake of another recent announcement that both Ohio and Kentucky are expected to be given $1.6 billion for use on projects around the Cincinnati area which are going to try and relieve the extremely congested Brent Spence Bridge that is utilized for both freight traffic along with standard travelers seeking to make their way over the Ohio River.
The vast majority of these funds seem to be coming from the new Bridge Investment Program, which was spawned out of a section of the infrastructure package. Both Sen. Rob Portman (R-OH) along with McConnell has assisted in securing the necessary funding for the project, as reported by the Cincinnati Enquirer. McConnell even went as far as predicting the building of a companion bridge which “will be one of the bill’s crowning accomplishments.”
Currently, Biden is in the process of wrapping up a vacation that he had planned for the U.S. Virgin Islands along with his wife, First Lady Jill Biden. Once he makes it back to Washington, D.C., Republicans are slated to take over their recently won seats and secure control of the House. Despite this, the Democrats will be maintaining their control of the Senate due to the results highlighting that the GOP performed well below most peopled expectations throughout the 2022 midterm election cycle.
A number of other key members of the Biden administration are also expected to be taking trips all over the country throughout this week to “discuss how the President’s economic plan is rebuilding our infrastructure, creating good-paying jobs – jobs that don’t require a four-year degree, and revitalizing communities left behind,” reported an official for the White House.
Vice President Kamala Harris is heading up to visit Chicago just as Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg will head to New London, Connecticut.
