Political Quotes

“Mr. Speaker, throughout American history, the path to prosperity has been infrastructure. It has been paving that path, building that road, constructing the transcontinental railroad, improving water systems, extending electrification to rural America, dams, flood control, and sewer systems. Each and every one of these initiatives were key to improving the quality of life for Americans, enacting business opportunities, and putting millions of Americans to work. They were all public-private partnerships primarily paid for with public investment. Creating these infrastructure marvels, which for most of our history were the envy of the world, put millions of Americans to work. Sadly, that is no longer the case. The United States has fallen behind the global leaders. Our infrastructure is mediocre, according to expert reports. The American Society of Civil Engineers has given our infrastructure a D-plus rating and identified over $3.5 trillion of investments that are going to be necessary just to bring it up to standard by 2020. That is how far we have fallen--a D-plus rating--and needing billions of dollars just to prevent further deterioration and decline. The failure to act carries significant costs in and of itself. There is more wear and tear on vehicles. There is more delays and congestion. There are safety problems associated with inferior infrastructure and poor maintenance.…”