The 217-212 reflected considerable uneasiness among Democrats over the prospect of voting for more debt-financed spending as the government runs mammoth budget deficits. Republicans were united in their opposition to the bill.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi and her lieutenants delayed the final vote for nearly an hour as they scrambled to find supporters among lawmakers eager to leave town for a holiday break. The bill includes more than $50 billion for public works projects and about an equal amount for cash-strapped state and local governments.
