Political Quotes

“this week, the House will be considering the most important economic and environmental bill of this session. It is the reauthorization of the Surface Transportation Act. It has been fascinating to watch the broadest coalition in memory be assembled in support of this important legislation to rightsize our investment in America's transportation system. This coalition ranges from the Sierra Club to the chamber of commerce, from the bicyclists to the truckers, people who lay down asphalt to those who care about historic preservation, all are on record as supporting an investment that is rightsized for America's future. The number that has been identified by the administration from the Department of Transportation is on the order of magnitude of $375 billion over the next 6 years. It does not appear, sadly, as though this House is going to be able to consider an appropriately sized piece of legislation to meet those needs. The bill that is coming forward is at $275 billion. Our colleagues in the Senate passed overwhelmingly a proposal for $318 billion. It is important not to fixate just on the amount of money, although that is not insignificant. What we want to do is make it so that it is appropriate for the needs that America has now. These are jobs that are not going to be outsourced to India or China. There are between 20,000 and 50,000 jobs that are created for each billion dollars of investment.”