As if you needed another reason to despise Republicans.....

[marmar]

from Grist:




"Is it just me, or is it hard to argue against writing the next chapter in American innovation?"

That was U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood on Twitter yesterday. He was talking about an article in the The New York Times on Republican gubernatorial candidates in several states who have vowed to reject federal stimulus funds for passenger rail projects.

According to the Times piece, candidates from California to Florida are lining up to say no to federal funding, and to the high-speed inter-city rail network that's been a centerpiece of the Obama administration's transportation policy:

In Wisconsin, which got more than $810 million in federal stimulus money to build a train line between Milwaukee and Madison, Scott Walker, the Milwaukee County executive and Republican candidate for governor, has made his opposition to the project central to his campaign.

Mr. Walker, who worries that the state could be required to spend $7 million to $10 million a year to operate the trains once the line is built, started a Web site, NoTrain.com, and has run a television advertisement in which he calls the rail project a boondoggle. "I'm Scott Walker," he says in the advertisement, "and if I'm elected as your next governor, we'll stop this train."

It's not just Walker. As the Times reports, John Kasich in Ohio, Rick Scott in Florida, and Meg Whitman in California are all declaring their intentions to say no to hundreds of millions of federal stimulus dollars for rail -- citing concerns over future costs to their states as well as skepticism about rail in general.

The Times notes that many of the candidates in question would be happy to see the money go to roads, although the law does not allow that. ..........(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.grist.org/article/2010-10-06-republican-gubernatorial-candidates-line-up-to-say-no-to-federal/

[RC]

1. And if the law stipulated that money go for roads, they would be against that.

Why do they hate America and Americans so? What did we ever do to them?

[HughBeaumont]

2. John Fascisht - "You're not going to get that train".

Yet this moron wants to phase out Ohio's state income tax . . . over 40% of this state's revenue, with no plan as to how the shortfall will be made up or if it will bring businesses here or if present businesses will start hiring. I guess we all just gotta have FAITH.

Ohio - get new shoes for your bullet wounds.

[Ron Green]

3. I think we've had enough federal money go to roads.

It fed a nasty habit for too long.

[Puzzler]

4. One of the big GOP talking points against rail ...

... is to make a false comparison between Europe and the US. The anti-rail argument says that Europe is smaller and has a larger population than the US. True, but the main point of Obama's rail program is to uses several smaller, more localized high-speed rail systems within the US: San Francisco/LA/San Diego, for example.

If the GOP objects to public funding for transport. Fair enough. As long as NO more public money goes to roads.

[quaker bill]

6. Sports stadiums as well?

please..

[JNelson6563]

5. They are against everything!

Assholes.

[Bitwit1234]

7. And died in the wool republican commentators

are saying the Democrats are at fault. Like Ed Rollins. He says Democrats lost their steam. Well the House passes very good damn bills, but when they get to the Senate the out of date rules let the republican minority hold up everything. I bet if the republicans took over the senate they first thing they would do is get rid of the filibuster and the 60 vote rule.

[Historic NY]

8. if they don't want it send it to NY.we could use a faster way to get from downstate to upstate.