House passes bill to avert looming rail strike, sending it to Senate ahead of crucial deadline

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, 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.”

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