Mr. Ossoff declined to comment on the call because it was private. Some Democrats also fear Mr. Biden would be forced by parliamentary rules to drop his call for a $15-an-hour minimum wage if the bill circumvented the filibuster via the so-called budget reconciliation process, though it is unclear whether Mr. Biden could get the votes for it even if it were, as some Democrats believe, eligible for inclusion. But White House officials said on Thursday that Democrats could move quickly without sacrificing bipartisanship. “The president wants this to be a bipartisan package, regardless of the mechanisms,” Jen Psaki, the White House press secretary, told reporters. Ms. Psaki said the president would make more calls to Republicans and Democrats this week.

Source: New York Times January 28, 2021 23:10 UTC