NBC News: House passes bill to avert looming rail strike, sending it to Senate ahead of crucial deadline
Railway workers are vowing to strike by Dec. 9 if a new agreement can’t be reached. The bill now heads to the Senate, where some members are threatening roadblocks to delay it.
By Scott Wong and Julie Tsirkin
WASHINGTON — The House passed legislation Wednesday to avert a potentially catastrophic rail strike that President Joe Biden warned could threaten the U.S. economy just weeks before Christmas.
The bill, which passed 290-137 with broad bipartisan support, now heads to the Senate, where both Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., have said lawmakers need to intervene this week.
“Leader McConnell and I both want to pass it quickly,” Schumer told reporters in the Capitol after a meeting with Biden and other top congressional leaders Tuesday. “We understand the time deadlines, and we’ll be working together and figure out the best way to get it done quickly.”