Political Quotes

“it probably doesn't come as a surprise for people to hear a Senator from the northeast be such a strong advocate of passenger rail and Amtrak. But I can tell you as this representative of Mississippi and a Senator from the southeastern part of the United States, we believe in passenger rail, too. It is important to the entire national economy, and so it is important to our economy. It is also important to the economy in my region of the country. I am pleased and excited about the possibility of restoring passenger rail to the gulf coast for the first time since Hurricane Katrina. We made it work between New Orleans and the Mississippi gulf coast and Mobile and Orlando before the storm, and we think we can make it work now. One provision in the bill establishes a new gulf coast working group, which will receive a $500,000 grant specifically for the purpose of returning rail to the area. Another provision creates a grant program that can assist applicants like the Southern Rail Commission and has worked to restore passenger rail to the gulf coast. In addition, I am an advocate of competition, so I am pleased to see that this new legislation opens up the possibility of having private rail carriers competing for up to three of Amtrak's long-distance routes. I think in this way we can achieve cost savings, better performance, and good worker protections. In closing, let me say that we are glad the law has been passed and signed.…”