Frank Lautenberg

I think, forgive me, but that sounds terribly short, when I see the disaster that is out there just in my own State and nearby States.

I see it in my own State. I mean, there is a lot of work yet to be done. People are waiting impatiently to see results.

The total backlog is about $2.1 billion.

You will forgive me, Mr. Tombar, but it looks like show and tell, because I can't imagine when you would distribute this to 40-plus States that there is going to be enough to really make a difference.

Mr. Nadeau, the FHWA ER program faced more than $1 billion backlog in projects even before Hurricane Irene struck.

I ask unanimous consent to speak as in morning business for 10 minutes. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered. Disaster Relief

we find ourselves in a peculiar condition. We must have the people across this country scratching their heads and wondering: What are those guys doing? We know the American people do not think much of us as it is, but they are surely going…

I think there's a huge risk for safety as we apply our facts to somebody else's model or vice versa.

Unfortunately, some say that we can't afford vital public investments like this right now, and I say we can't afford not to make these investments.

Stronger national rail service will also be good for our national security, and it's good for the environment because it will help our country kick its dangerous oil addiction.

But what this gets to is what can possibly be imagined here that an investor would expect to get in return, and is it likely that an investor would put up the resources without demanding tighter control over operations, let's say, of the…

It's a lot easier for them to use our trains than it is to use another mode of transportation.

We started this process in 2008 when both parties came together and passed my Passenger Rail Investment and Improvement Act.

I ask unanimous consent to be able to speak for up to 10 minutes. The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.

Giving Amtrak the resources it needs to better serve the public will be good for the economy, spark job creation.

Mr. Boardman has heard my complaints about trying to write on the train as I ride. I don't want people to see that shaky handwriting. That has to do with age, not with me.

It's incredible the number of people that are forced to go through that space.

Certainly in my view it could very significantly raise the question about, what's the return likely to be?

What happens if you do that? What impact will that have on Amtrak's ability to continue support for passenger rail service across the country?

The question is whether or not there are going to be demands made in fairness on the agreements, the contracts...

Make no mistake, if the United States wants to remain competitive globally we need to move beyond the status quo on transportation, and that job begins by making a stronger investment in Amtrak.

I don't think that the detractors, those who don't want to give Amtrak any money, understand what the implications might be.

We have an opportunity to bring our rail network into the 21st century and once again make the United States the envy of the world.

Many of the communities around the world, other countries around the world, don't pay attention to the needs and the rights that people have.

But the one thing that all of us here who have an interest have to maintain is our determination to fight against these reckless cuts that are done without understanding what the consequences may be.