Jasper Packard: “I am not opposed to the project. I have discussed this at length with San Diego people. I think that it is a good…”

“I am not opposed to the project. I have discussed this at length with San Diego people. I think that it is a good project. The rail line, this San Diego & Arizona Eastern rail corridor at some point in the future, I hope, will be open. I simply feel that this is not the proper way to proceed with the funding for it. The opening of this railroad would benefit the San Diego region. It would provide a more direct and less costly route for freight shipment from all parts of the United States to the Port of San Diego. But I do believe that there are other ways to do it. Certainly we ought to pursue that. But the bill does not fund the loan guarantee program. There are no funds in the loan guarantee program. If this amendment passed, there are many projects that would apply for this loan guarantee funds. It would not just be the San Diego project. It would be many. And they would have to compete for those funds. It would be very limited and, thus, I think that there is certainly no assurance that these funds would go to the San Diego rail corridor.”