James Oberstar: “That is a very much appreciated candid answer.”

Using a National Infrastructure Bank to finance a large part of our infrastructure needs means we will be able to target Federal spending more efficiently.

But we all also recognize that the potential cost of meeting these needs is immense.

The Highway Trust Fund, based chiefly on the gasoline tax, will never again be adequate to fund even ongoing maintenance of our roads and bridges.

I, too, have natural resources--national forests, national parks, wildlife refuges. When fire, as it does regularly, strikes the national forest, that land regenerates. The oil destroys. It likely cannot be restored by itself or by human…