President Joe Biden’s chief economic adviser and the Senate's majority leader both expressed optimism Sunday that the Democratic president's $1.9 trillion social spending and climate change package, the Build Back Better bill, will clear the Senate and make it to his desk to be signed.

What You Need To Know

  • The White House and Senate leaders expressed optimism Sunday about the fate of the $1.9 trillion spending package, stressing party unity as the evenly divided chamber prepares to negotiate Biden’s massive social spending bill

  • Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer told reporters he is willing to negotiate with moderate Sens. Joe Manchin and Krysten Sinema to address areas of concern on the bill, adding that Democrats are "in very good shape to get 50 votes”

  • Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., said Sunday that she’s confident Manchin could eventually come around on a paid family leave provision of the plan that he repeatedly vowed to oppose

  • Also Sunday, White House National Economic Council director Brian Deese said that the Build Back Better act contains provisions that are popular with the entire party, and expects the bill to have “a lot of momentum”

House Democrats passed the Build Back Better bill on Friday, with all but one member of the party supporting the sweeping measure, which includes funding for universal pre-Kindergarten, reducing prescription drug costs and the largest-ever legislative investment to fight climate change.

Appearing on “Fox News Sunday,” White House National Economic Council director Brian Deese said that the Biden administration will work with “every member of the Senate” as Democrats attempt to find compromise and advance the president's bill through the evenly divided chamber.

Deese said that, despite concerns from moderate Democrats, the Build Back Better act contains provisions that are popular with the entire party — such as lowering the cost of child and elder care.

“We have broad agreement on those provisions," Deese said Sunday. "And so I expect as we move to the Senate, we will have a lot of momentum."

A successful vote will depend almost entirely on the support of two moderates — Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, and Krysten Sinema of Arizona — who have expressed concerns about some provisions of the package, as well as their desire to further whittle down the price tag of the mammoth legislation.

Speaking at a Sunday news briefing, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., stressed party unity, signaling he was open to negotiating with Manchin and Sinema to address their concerns.

"The House did a very strong bill,” he said. “Everyone knows that Manchin and Sinema have their concerns, but we're going to try to negotiate with them and get a very strong, bold bill out of the Senate which will then go back to the House and pass.”

Meanwhile, one prominent Senate Democrat said that Manchin appeared to be softening on the idea of leaving in a paid family leave provision – a major sticking point in the legislation for the West Virginia Democrat, and one he previously said he will not support.

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand, D-N.Y., a major advocate for the provision, told CBS News’ “Face the Nation" that she is optimistic that Manchin will come around on paid family and medical leave.

Manchin “has come a long way on paid leave,” she said, and has shown an interest in learning more about it.

"I think Sen. Manchin and I can come together hopefully in the next couple of weeks on something that could be included in this package," she said. "I'm hopeful that if I can use the next three weeks to really impress upon Sen. Manchin that some things can only be done with Democrats – only that now is the only time to do that, perhaps, in the next decade."

Asked Sunday he thinks the package could pass the Senate, Schumer said: "I think we're in very good shape to get 50 votes," but that he knows Republicans in the chamber will look for ways "to try to knock it out."

Despite challenging odds, the White House is optimistic the bill will pass.

In working closely with lawmakers this fall as they worked to advance both the infrastructure bill and the larger domestic spending package, the White House now has “a good understanding” of where consensus lies in the evenly divided chamber, Deese said Sunday.

"We will work with every member of the Senate on this bill,” Deese said. “But I think that because of that work over several months, we really do now have a good understanding of where the consensus lies.”

Appearing Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., echoed the cautious optimism shared by Deese and others.

Tester acknowledged that while the bill is likely to undergo some changes before it is brought for a floor vote, “reasonable people” in the chamber “can come up with a bill that is a very, very good bill, [one] that works for states like Montana and other states in the area.”

“We don't all see the world the same way, so let's negotiate, and let's come up with a bill that lowers costs for families and cuts taxes … and gets things done to help move this economy forward, so we can stay the premier power in the world,” Tester added.

Meanwhile, Deese also sought to dismiss criticism that the bill could worsen rising U.S. inflation rates.

"There's no question inflation is high, and it's affecting American consumers, and it is affecting their outlook — but that's actually why we need to move on this Build Back Better bill right now," Deese told Fox News’ Bret Baier.

“Experts across the board have looked at” the legislation, “and have concluded that it won't increase inflation because it's paid for," he continued.  “When you pay for investments, you don't actually add aggregate demand to the economy.”

Deese acknowledged that voters might be frustrated with the lengthy, start-and-stop nature of congressional negotiations, but he touted the progress made by the administration in recent weeks, including the successful passage of the $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill, which Biden signed into law last week.

“That's a bill that people will start to see the impact of,” he said of the infrastructure bill, “[A]nd when they see us delivering in places that are directly relevant to their lives, then I think that they will understand what we're doing here."

"I think the American people understand that we have made progress, but there's a lot of work to do.”

"We understand that the onus here is on delivering,” he added, “and that's why we are focused on getting these bills done and implementing them consistent with their purpose.”

Meanwhile, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg also lauded Friday’s House vote on NBC News’ Meet the Press, telling host Chuck Todd that, “what it amounts to, even as details get resolved and negotiations continue, is a historic investment in making it easier and more affordable to be a family with kids in this country.”  

“It will go down in history, this turning point that we're about to create things to build back better."

Schumer warned that it might be a tense few weeks on Capitol Hill as negotiations on the bill, and a number of other pressing matters, including the debt limit and government funding, come to a head.

"When the government does big things, it's not easy," the New York Democrat said. "It takes a lot of work and a lot of negotiation and it's made all the harder because our Republican friends are intransigent."