Senate Democrats advance $3.5 trillion spending package without any Republican support

• Democrats approved the $3.5 trillion budget blueprint early Wednesday morning.
• The vote was 50-49 along party lines.
• It now goes to the House, but President Joe Biden may struggle keeping Democrats in lockstep.

Senate Democrats advanced the $3.5 trillion budget blueprint early Wednesday, setting the stage for what could be a historic level of spending to expand the social safety net, a key goal for President Joe Biden.

The vote was 50-49 along party lines, capping a so-called vote-a-rama that saw a barrage of nonbinding amendment votes. The session lasted more than 14 hours, CNBC reported.

Every Senate Democrat voted in favor of the plan over unanimous Republican opposition. GOP Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota was absent for the vote, The New York Times reported.

"The American people want a government which represents all of us, and not just the few," the Senate Budget Committee's chairman, Sen. Bernie Sanders, said Tuesday. "This legislation is going to ask the wealthy and the powerful to start paying their fair share of taxes so that we can address the needs of working families, the elderly, the children, the sick, and the poor."

The spending plan would expand Medicare so it provides dental, vision, and hearing coverage. It would also set up a national program for paid family and medical leave as well as tuition-free community college, a child allowance, and initiatives to address the climate crisis. It would be funded with tax hikes on the richest Americans and multinational companies.

The resolution was adopted on the heels of the Senate approving a $1 trillion infrastructure bill. Now, a dozen committees will begin drafting formal reconciliation legislation with a September 15 deadline. That procedure allows the passage of certain bills with a simple majority of 51 votes, instead of the 60 typically required in the Senate to pass legislation.

But it sets up what may be a perilous legislative stretch for Democrats as they assemble the massive plan. Many Democrats view the spending as historic, reflecting a decade of pent-up Democratic goals they struggled to achieve under President Barack Obama.

They're attempting to command their narrow Senate and House majorities and deliver on a broad range of economic programs to level the playing field for middle-class Americans. Biden must keep Democrats in lockstep, given House Democrats can afford only three defections and Senate Democrats cannot lose the support of anyone.