James Oberstar: “The only thing that is up is the stimulus money, and all of the funds are going out according to plan.”

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.

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…

We must move away from complete reliance on public funding for infrastructure and forge a new, stronger connection between private capital and infrastructure needs.