Senate Democrats released a sweeping $3.5 trillion budget blueprint on Monday that proposes to expand Medicare, boost federal child care and education programs, and invest new sums to combat climate change, as party lawmakers prepare to take the next step toward advancing central elements of President Biden’s economic agenda.
 
Democrats view the wide array of proposed spending as historic, and they hope to rely on their narrow but potent majorities in Congress to grow government to a level not seen in decades. The measure also proposes universal pre-kindergarten, reform of federal immigration laws and fresh efforts to lower prescription drug prices, marking fresh attempts on Capitol Hill to adopt long-stalled priorities and campaign promises from the 2020 presidential election.
 
In releasing the document, Democratic leaders pledged their package would be financed in full, chiefly through tax increases targeting corporations and wealthy families — all the while leaving untouched Americans making less than $400,000 annually in keeping with Biden’s pledge. Like much of the budget, however, it ultimately leaves the work to draft those provisions to other lawmakers and committees. They are set to start translating the numbers into policy come September, making the announcement Monday the start of a long, fraught process in the House and the Senate still to come.
 
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