Political Quotes

“I don't think I will use it all. I am sure any of my colleagues watching on TV are hoping I don't use it all also. I want to close by just emphasizing again that this is truly a reform bill that was crafted in a bipartisan basis. There is significant reforms in here. It is going to make Amtrak more transparent. They are going to force these metrics to measure like businesses do. They haven't done that for the 40 years or so they have been in existence. We have significant environmental streamlining, which not only benefits Amtrak projects, but it is going to benefit the freight rails, as they spend 18 percent of their revenues--almost $30 billion--that they will invest across the class I railroads to go into their infrastructure, which is incredibly important to movement of freight in this country and having an efficient economy. The bill also breaks out Amtrak into business lines, leaving the profits on the Northeast corridor--and the other profits on other corridors--but that is the biggest corridor, that is the one that makes money, leaving it there to invest in that corridor. By the way, as they reinvest those dollars, we can learn from what is happening on the Northeast corridor because there are corridors around this country that need to be developed because of the growing population. That is why we empower the States on those 21 State- sponsored lines. On those 21 lines, States are going to have more power, more say-- equal say, I will say--with Amtrak.…”