Murphy projected to win in New Jersey

Hey, good morning, Anne-Marie. So the results from election day and the Build Back Better plan are potentially connected. Some Democrats, including the president, say if the social spending plan had been passed, prior to election day, the Democrats would have seen much more support nationwide, and perhaps some of the Republican wins could have been averted. CBS News projects New Jersey Democrat, Phil Murphy, has won re-election as governor, narrowly edging out his opponent Republican, Jack Ciattarelli.

If you want to know what the future looks like, folks, come to New Jersey. If you want to understand where America is heading, look to New Jersey.

Ciattarelli's communications director, though, tweeted last night that it's irresponsible of the media to make this call when the New Jersey Secretary of State doesn't even know how many ballots are left to be counted. Even with a loss, the race was much closer than many thought it would be. Coupled with a GOP win in the Virginia governor's race, it added up to a strong election day for Republicans.

I think this is an earthquake, it really is an earthquake. This is a clear signal from voters, in a Blue state-- Virginia is a very Blue state-- that they don't like President Biden's policies.

At the White House, President Biden said the results in these governor races are not a rejection of his presidency, but show his party needs to produce results for the American people.

I think it should have passed before election day.

He's talking about his infrastructure and social spending plans Mr. Biden claims those will produce millions of jobs and enhance the standard of living for all Americans. But the future of both bills remains uncertain, something that worries Democrats looking toward next year's midterm elections.

As one who will be running for re-election in 2022, I need results that I can show the American people that Congress can deliver.

House Speaker, Nancy Pelosi said there will be a vote this week on the president's social spending bill. So voting on both the president's Build Back Better plan and the bipartisan infrastructure plan could take place as soon as later today. Democratic Senator, Joe Manchin though still wants more negotiation, and he balked at News that the social spending bill would again include a new paid family leave program, Anne-Marie. ANNE-MARIE GREEN: All right, so Senator Manchin still wants to continue to negotiate. He and other moderates have managed to whittle down this social safety program quite a bit, shaving a couple of trillion off of it. Where does the party currently stand on this?

Well, Anne-Marie, the word, party, is a little more complicated here, because even if a lawmaker aligns with the Democratic Party, they might not align with the Build Back Better plan as it's currently written. For example, Manchin who's a moderate Democrat, doesn't love all the content of the bill and thinks it's too expensive, even though it's been trimmed down, like you said. On the other hand, there are progressive Democrats, notably in the House, who say they won't support the bill if it's pared down, or if it's diluted, and it doesn't include items like paid family leave, provisions that they promised people who voted for their progressive ideas, when those progressives were campaigning in 2020. So the party is split and that's been the problem of getting Biden's plans passed. ANNE-MARIE GREEN: So Speaker Pelosi has said before that there would be a vote on the infrastructure bill and the social spending package, but that has yet to happen. What are the chances that a vote actually happens this week?

I don't gamble, Anne-Marie, but the promises of a vote that we've heard week over week, and the fact that the bills haven't been brought to the House floor makes me not want to put any money whatsoever on the promise of a vote happening today, or tomorrow, or Monday, or whenever. But Pelosi is optimistic, and has said that she believes a vote on the Build Back Better plan will happen by tomorrow, latest, and then she believes that they'll be able to vote on the $1 trillion infrastructure bill, which has already passed the Senate. So if it passes the House, it would finally head to Biden's desk for a signature, Anne-Marie. ANNE-MARIE GREEN: All right, Laura Podesta, thank you.

Thanks.