Paid family leave in spotlight as Senate weighs Biden social spending plan
The legislation, which aims to bolster the US social safety net and fight climate change, must win over divided Senate Democratic moderates and liberals
Fresh off securing US House of Representatives passage of President Joe Biden's social and environmental spending plan, his fellow Democrats are pressing ahead with it in the Senate, where the bill may undergo major changes on issues such as paid family leave to satisfy party centrists.
The $1.75 trillion legislation, approved by the House on Friday over united Republican opposition, includes four weeks of family leave paid by the government for reasons such as the birth of a child or caring for a sick relative. It is likely to become a battleground issue in the days ahead.
The legislation, which aims to bolster the US social safety net and fight climate change, must win over divided Senate Democratic moderates and liberals, as Republicans remain opposed. Democrats have said they want an agreement by year's end. Any Senate changes would need House approval again.
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"There's going to be some changes," Democratic Senator Jon Tester told NBC's "Meet the Press" program, urging compromise. "We don't all see the world the same way."
