Obama’s Labor Day HSR Plans
With the economy stuck in recession and Democrats about to pay a political price for inadequate stimulus at the November election, the White House has been considering a range of economic measures to...
View ArticleThe Good and the Bad In International Funding of California HSR
Despite the worst recession in 60 years, the United States of America remains the wealthiest nation on earth by quite a wide margin. And California is one of the wealthiest states in that country, with...
View ArticleThe Shifting Federal HSR Picture
As the dust settles from Tuesday’s election, we’re starting to get a bit clearer picture of where HSR stands in the new Congress, split between Republican control of the House and Democratic control of...
View ArticleHouse Republicans Propose Eliminating HSR and Amtrak Funding
This insane proposal should come as no surprise: The conservative Republican Study Committee has released a document identifying $2.5 trillion in cuts over 10 years, a tangible list of programs...
View ArticleSo What’s Up With the Transportation Bill?
Time for an update on the long-delayed federal Transportation Bill. It was due to be reauthorized in 2009, was kicked down the road to 2010, and now languishes in 2011, with the White House having...
View ArticleObama Wants Extension of Current Transportation Bill, Regulatory Changes for...
Two significant announcements from the White House today could have an impact on the California high speed rail project. The first is President Barack Obama’s call for a “clean” extension of the...
View ArticleWSJ: Obama’s HSR Plan “Foundering”
One of the problems with political reporting in America today is the assumption that certain things are permanent when in fact they are transitory. A lot can happen in two years. In 2009 the stimulus...
View ArticleHouse Republicans Vote to Defund Mass Transit in America
Much of the recent attack on high speed rail in California, especially by credulous government watchdog agencies like the Legislative Analyst’s Office and the State Auditor, is due to the fact that the...
View ArticleCalifornia Congressional Democrats Call For Funding HSR
According to the LA Times, “virtually all” of California’s Democratic Congressional delegation signed a letter denouncing the Republican “highway bill” that defunds most forms of mass transit,...
View ArticleMore Reasons Not To Expect a New Transportation Bill Until 2013
Because Democrats failed to pass a new Transportation Bill when they controlled both Congress and the White House in 2009 and 2010, the bill’s renewal has been stuck in limbo since the far right seized...
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