Free Republic

WASHINGTON (AP) - Democrats had hoped the one big policy area they could find common ground with President Donald Trump on was infrastructure, but they don't like what they're hearing from administration officials about the transportation portion of the plan that's still in the works. Trump has promised to generate $1 trillion in infrastructure spending over 10 years. With two of his other top campaign pledges in trouble - an effort to repeal and replace the Obama administration health care law has failed so far, and without savings to the government from health care changes there may not be enough...

In a matter of days, time will run out on a plan that could cut down on commuting times, pave the way for even less traffic congestion, and potentially give taxpayers a break. For reasons that remain unclear, the General Assembly has ignored the Illinois Department of Transportation's I-55 managed lanes project, and the cost of doing nothing has the potential to harm the state's ability to do business for years to come. The I-55 managed lanes proposal would add an express toll lane between the Veterans Memorial Tollway in the southwest suburbs and the Dan Ryan Expressway in Chicago....

State Sen. Frank Wagner, a Republican candidate for governor, said Monday he'd like to turn much of U.S. 58 into an interstate as part of his plan to juice transportation construction in Virginia with an increase in the gas tax. The increase, part of a tiered plan that would charge more per gallon when prices are low, then roll back the rate when prices rise, wouldn't just affect rates in Hampton Roads or Northern Virginia, which have regional taxes. It would be statewide in implementation and effect, Wagner said. Wagner is charting an unusual course in this GOP primary: running...

For some, the possibility of tolls on Interstate 70 across Indiana is going over like a flat tire. But Republican lawmakers who control the legislature say they could help fund new driving lanes and only those who use the road would pay for them. “I think it’s totally unfair,” said Judy Anderson, president of the Vigo County Board of Commissioners. “I don’t think we would be supportive at all.” Pending legislation would let the governor place toll lanes on interstates and bridges, subject to federal approval. Many Vigo County residents commute to jobs in Indianapolis and a large number of...

BADEN-BADEN, Germany — Governments need to do more to create growth that benefits everyone, and the U.S. should spend more on roads, highways, bridges and airports, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said Friday. The body, which includes the world's better-off countries, said in a report that governments should focus on providing better access to high-quality education and supporting employment for women through measures like affordable child care. It also highlighted the need for more spending on infrastructure. OECD Secretary-General Angel Gurria called for an "upskilling of the workforce" to address worker anxiety about the future of their jobs...

In their 2017 infrastructure report card, the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) gave the United States a dismal D+—and for good reason. ASCE notes, for instance, that each day 188 million trips are made across the nation’s 56,007 structurally deficient bridges. Another catastrophe like the 2007 collapse of the I-35 bridge in Minneapolis (which killed 13 people and injured 145) seems only a matter of time. In fact, just this past week an elevated section of I-85 collapsed in Atlanta after a fire. A recent state inspection had found numerous cracks and spalling (concrete deterioration) in the structure.  ...

Federal funding for Maryland’s Purple Line is in jeopardy, as are Metro’s hopes for a significant increase in money from the government under President Trump’s proposed 2018 budget released Thursday. Trump’s proposed spending plan, which slashes the federal transportation budget by 13 percent, also curbs long-distance Amtrak service out of Washington and cuts millions in federal grants that the region’s governments have relied on for new rapid bus lines, road work, bus stop improvements and bike paths. The cuts came as a shock to many, considering Trump’s campaign pledge to pump $1 trillion into the nation’s crumbling infrastructure. “I find...

UNITED NATIONS (Reuters) - The State Department said on Monday it was ending U.S. funding for the United Nations Population Fund, the international body's agency focused on family planning as well as maternal and child health in more than 150 countries. In a letter to U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker, the State Department said it was dropping the funding because the U.N. Population Fund (UNFPA) "supports, or participates in the management of, a program of coercive abortion or involuntary sterilization." The cut marks U.S. President Donald Trump's first move to curtail funding for the United Nations and...

When it comes to President Donald Trump’s threats and executive order to cut federal funding off to so-called “sanctuary cities,” a City Council committee Thursday requested a proactive plan on how to “hit back” with legal action should the order be executed on Los Angeles. “We are on the defensive so much of the time,” said Councilwoman Nury Martinez at a meeting of the Ad Hoc Committee on Immigrant Affairs before requesting the city attorney’s office report back “on how you are going to protect our city and our interests in case the federal government comes after us.” Councilman David...

President Trump's funding request for a border wall will likely be put on hold, Senate Republican leaders signaled Tuesday. Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.), a senior member of the Appropriations Committee, announced at a leadership press conference that Trump's supplemental funding request will wait until later in the year. He said the Senate and House leadership are very close to negotiating a bill to fund government for the rest of 2017. Adding a supplemental spending bill requested by Trump to pay for military activities and a wall along the U.S.-Mexico border would complicate the talks and should be dealt with at...

NORTH HOLLYWOOD, LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Outrage has grown at Walter Reed Middle School in North Hollywood, as the school faces layoffs and increased class sizes due to a law limiting funds for schools with a higher white student body. The Los Angeles Unified School District provides more funding for schools where the white population is below 30 percent. In a letter to parents, the district noted the highly regarded middle school had been above the percentage for the past couple years. The racial formula was a condition imposed by court decisions dealing with desegregation in the 1970s. Parents, however,...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) - A judge is rejecting opponents’ latest attempt to stall California’s $64 billion high-speed rail project. But Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Raymond Cadei said Wednesday that he will consider their arguments before the state issues voter-approved bonds next month. He set a hearing for next month to consider their motion for a preliminary injunction.

As American taxpayers, we are not foolish enough to think that our money isn't wrongly spent by the Government everyday, but this is another matter entirely. The fact that President Obama and Hillary Clinton did something so unbelievably abhorrent that Congress has to pass a bill to insure it never happens again, is too much of a betrayal to grasp. U.S. Senator Rand Paul (R-Ky.) and Democrat Representative Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii are involved in introducing legislature to insure against such a betrayal and criminal injustice occurring ever again involving the United States of America. How did we ever lose...

If you watch activity on the floors of Congress you may be shocked by some of what you hear. With a slip of the tongue, Rep. Peter DeFazio (D-Ore.) not only sought continued taxpayer funding for abortion provider Planned Parenthood, but also funding for the organization’s efforts in offering “STD tasting and treatment.” “It’s not about abortion, it’s about something different,” DeFazio said on the House Floor Tuesday. “ It’s about breast exams, pap smears, physical exams, STD tasting and treatment…” STD tasting and treatment? That certainly is “something different.” Thanks anyway, but I’ll take a pass on federally funding...

CINCINNATI - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, will highlight in downtown Cincinnati this morning key infrastruture projects, such as the Brent Spence Bridge, as he outlines a framework to rebuild and repair the country’s infrastructure which will create millions of construction jobs. The northern Ohio Senator will be joined by Cincinnati Mayor John Cranley, Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority President and CEO Laura Brunner, and OKI Regional Council of Governments Deputy Executive DirectorRobert Koehler. President Donald Trump previously promised $1 trillion of investment in American infrastructure during his campaign. Brown joined Senate colleagues to release a roadmap for making...

Dozens of governments and private philanthropists have pledged nearly $200 million for family planning services, after US President Donald Trump banned funding for groups linked to abortion. Sweden, Belgium and Finland promised €20 million each (about $21 million) to the the global fundraising initiative, She Decides, launched by Dutch Development Minister Lilianne Ploumen. The pledges came at a one-day She Decides conference in Brussels on Thursday, aimed at raising funds for aid groups whose funding is under threat. Some 50 governments, ranging from EU members states to African and Asian countries, attended the conference. Organizers hope to raise $600 million...

The pattern continues…   Those who are connected to the crimes and misdemeanors of the Clinton cartel live in hiding for fear of their lives.   Of course there was funneling of money going on. The Wikileaks and Guccifer 2.0 hacks went along way in documenting the quid pro quo nature of Clinton diplomacy.   Back in the 90s, it was selling nuclear secrets to China, and schmoozing with high powered Chinese individuals, caught up in real estate deals, fundraising schemes and the like.   So it is little surprising, though certainly alarming, that this story has surfaced of...

Note too that Pence specifically took ownership of this position: US President Donald Trump expects NATO allies to make real progress by the end of this year towards meeting the increased defence spending target agreed by the alliance, his Vice President Mike Pence said Monday. “The president and the American people expect our allies to keep their word and to do more in our common defence … the president expects real progress by the end of 2017,” he said. “If you have a plan to get there, our alliance needs you to accelerate it,” Pence said. “If you don’t yet...

Kansas Republican Gov. Sam Brownback is hoping the federal government can rescue several critical infrastructure projects that the state can no longer afford.The Brownback administration recently sent what amounts to a wish list to President Donald Trump for inclusion in his planned infrastructure initiative. It includes the following $240 million in highway and bridge projects delayed or abandoned because of the state’s ongoing budget problems: $50 million to replace a section of the Lewis and Clark Viaduct that carries Interstate 70 across the Kansas River between Kansas and Missouri.$91 million to build an I-235 interchange in Wichita.$45 million to reconstruct...

<p>MADISON -- A new audit shows huge cost overruns at the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, with dozens of projects costing double or triple their original estimates.</p> <p>The Legislative Audit Bureau report finds that estimated costs for 19 major projects completed between 2006 and 2016 were $1.5 billion, double the initial projection. The audit also finds that the estimated costs of 16 ongoing major highway projects have increased by $3.1 billion.</p>