American Infrastructure is crumbling

[Guvnah]

@Kevhead

So bernie can shift that money

As a senator in the minority party?

[NJBob]

@Safiel

@WildRose

Federal money ends up going into nearly every highway and roadway in the US.

To simply cut states off from those dollars would really lead us to crumbling infrastructure in a hurry.

Those “non critical routes” as you call them are the most important when it comes to getting food, fuel, and fiber off the farms and out of the fields keeping this country fed and providing the single largest export sectors we have, ag and petroleum.

I am not proposing to cut States off from funding. And I am well aware of how the Department of Transportation doles out funding.

But the vast majority of Federal funding goes to the national highway system, which is comprised of the Interstate Highway System and the United States Highway System. Roads outside those two systems are partially funded with Federal block grants, but at a far lower amount.

Funding U.S. Highway 301 or U.S. Highway 17 at a higher amount diverts money from higher priority roadways. By decommissioning all or most of these roadways, I am merely prioritizing.

I am NOT totally denying funds to these routes.

And I do believe the several States have to step up their own funding.

Does the Constitutional mandate for post roads factor into this in any way?

[Safiel]

@NJBob

@Safiel

@WildRose

Federal money ends up going into nearly every highway and roadway in the US.

To simply cut states off from those dollars would really lead us to crumbling infrastructure in a hurry.

Those “non critical routes” as you call them are the most important when it comes to getting food, fuel, and fiber off the farms and out of the fields keeping this country fed and providing the single largest export sectors we have, ag and petroleum.

I am not proposing to cut States off from funding. And I am well aware of how the Department of Transportation doles out funding.

But the vast majority of Federal funding goes to the national highway system, which is comprised of the Interstate Highway System and the United States Highway System. Roads outside those two systems are partially funded with Federal block grants, but at a far lower amount.

Funding U.S. Highway 301 or U.S. Highway 17 at a higher amount diverts money from higher priority roadways. By decommissioning all or most of these roadways, I am merely prioritizing.

I am NOT totally denying funds to these routes.

And I do believe the several States have to step up their own funding.

Does the Constitutional mandate for post roads factor into this in any way?

Actually, you could justify every road in the nation using the Post Roads provision, given the fact that with universal delivery, there is hardly a road the Post Office does not use.

However, National Defense has been used to justify most highways, particularly the construction of the Interstate System.

[Safiel]

@Kevhead

@Guvnah

We can do it. What would it take? $50 billion?

That’s the budget for the US Dept of Education.

Maintaining US highways and interstates is arguably a fedgov constitutional dictate. (The interstate system was designed and created foundationally as a matter of national defense, after all.) Department of Education should not exist at all. And at a minimum, it shouldn’t exist at the invasive level it does. Realign our constitutional priorities.

The new procurement of the b 21 raider bombers is about 100 billion. So bernie can shift that money out of defense and put it into infrastructure in the name of national emergency. Easy peasy

That is why I so vigorously oppose the transfers done by Trump in the name of “emergencies.”

In the name of an “emergency” a President Warren or Sanders could plunder the Defense Department to shore up infrastructure.

Congress should be making those appropriations decisions, regardless of whether the President has an R or D behind his name and regardless of what the so called “emergency” of the day is.

[mobulis]

@Safiel

@Kevhead

@Guvnah

We can do it. What would it take? $50 billion?

That’s the budget for the US Dept of Education.

Maintaining US highways and interstates is arguably a fedgov constitutional dictate. (The interstate system was designed and created foundationally as a matter of national defense, after all.) Department of Education should not exist at all. And at a minimum, it shouldn’t exist at the invasive level it does. Realign our constitutional priorities.

The new procurement of the b 21 raider bombers is about 100 billion. So bernie can shift that money out of defense and put it into infrastructure in the name of national emergency. Easy peasy

That is why I so vigorously oppose the transfers done by Trump in the name of “emergencies.”

In the name of an “emergency” a President Warren or Sanders could plunder the Defense Department to shore up infrastructure.

Congress should be making those appropriations decisions, regardless of whether the President has an R or D behind his name and regardless of what the so called “emergency” of the day is.

That’s true but guess what, if trump gets to do it then so do we.

[westaussie]

What happened in 2017 and 2018 when the Republicans had a majority in the House of Reps?

[WuWei]

@Safiel

In the name of an “emergency” a President Warren or Sanders could plunder the Defense Department to shore up infrastructure.

And well he should. Pocahontas is never going to be President.

[WildRose]

There is no infrastructure emergency. It would never stand a court challenge.

[mobulis]

@WildRose

There is no infrastructure emergency. It would never stand a court challenge.

There’s no wall emergency either.

[WildRose]

Yes there provably was an emergency need to secure the border that was easily proven to satisfy the courts.

[mobulis]

@WildRose

Yes there provably was an emergency need to secure the border that was easily proven to satisfy the courts.

Then there will be a infrastructure emergency.

[WildRose]

No, even if he were declare one it would never stand up to court challenge.

[Kevhead]

@WildRose

No, even if he were declare one it would never stand up to court challenge.

Even congress knows there wasnt an emergency. It was pure bs. You supported all of trumps actions. One day its gonna bite you in the ass

[WildRose]

Well that’s a pure fabrication on your part. I don’t support all of Trumps actions.

By every objective standard there was a emergency on the border creating a health and welfare emergency for the illegals. The only way to remedy that was to cut the flow which was done quite effectively with this move.

The SCOTUS upheld the emergency declaration because the evidence was overwhelming.

[WuWei]

@WildRose

No, even if he were declare one it would never stand up to court challenge.

Sure it could. There’s a better case for it than the border.

[WildRose]

No because people were actually dying as a result of the surge.

[WuWei]

@WildRose

No because people were actually dying as a result of the surge.

People are dying because the infrastructure is unsafe and more.

[WildRose]

Where is the collapse in federal infrastructure causing deaths?

[WuWei]

@WildRose

Where is the collapse in federal infrastructure causing deaths?

Federal? It’s all federal.

All over the country. It’s a mess.

[Safiel]

@WildRose

Where is the collapse in federal infrastructure causing deaths?

Remember the Interstate bridge that collapsed???!!!

I-35W Mississippi River bridge