Trump Just Promised To Double Down On Obama's Failed Stimulus

Investors Business Daily ^ | August 03, 2016 | Editorial

[expat_panama]

2016 Elections: Largely overlooked because of the dust over his attacks on Khizr Khan, Donald Trump made an eye-opening promise on Tuesday, saying that he'd spend twice as much as Hillary Clinton on fixing roads and bridges. It's an outlandish proposal for any politician to make. But it's almost inconceivable that the Republican nominee for president would be trudging down this dreary big-government path.

"We need much more money than (Clinton's plan) to rebuild our infrastructure," Trump told Fox...

The numbers we're talking about here are massive. Clinton says that if elected she would boost federal spending...

Trump says he'll spend around $550 billion more over five years, which means that he's effectively splitting the difference between a liberal Democrat and a socialist Democrat. (Trump's spending plan also happens to be in line with what liberal economist Larry Summers advocated at a panel discussion at the Democratic National Convention.)

Looked at another way, Trump would double current federal spending on infrastructure...

...two problems with Trump's -- and Hillary's and Bernie's -- massive infrastructure spending plans. 1) They won't work, and 2) They aren't needed.

How do we know they won't work? Because President Obama already tried it...

...a recent Government Accountability Office report found that, when it comes to bridges at least, things are improving. The GAO found a 21% decline in the number of structurally deficient bridges between 2005 and 2014, while the country built 15,000 new bridges...

...too much bureaucracy. Any new road or bridge, or airport or dam or pipeline faces an onslaught of bureaucratic delays...

As a businessman, Trump should understand this and, instead of trying to one-up Hillary Clinton on spending, he should be demanding more accountability for the vast sums the nation already spends on its infrastructure.

[EQAndyBuzz]

“How do we know they won’t work? Because President Obama already tried it...”

No, Obama didn’t try it. He took the money and poof, it was gone.

[hoosiermama]

Difference is. H Rotten would use tax money — borrow money
Trump would sell low interest bonds

[CincyRichieRich]

Uh, big difference perchance, Trump would actually build the stuff without the governmental $1000 signs instead of tunnelling the stimulus money to solar companies and labor unions and Iran?

Oh, and a strategically placed southern wall.

Ok, IBD is part of the Koch GOPe. . They suck.

[Ghost of SVR4]

As long as a wall is part of the infrastructure, I’m good.

Well said...

[faucetman]

This graph means nothing. Maybe increased spending is because the infrastructure from the fifties is now falling apart.

Spending has been increasing, but is it enough to keep up with the decay?

Everything in context

[hoosiermama]

Trump also spoke of contracts that rewarded cost overruns vs contracts that rewarded good workmanship and completion on time or before.

[castlegreyskull]

There is a big difference. Trump will actually fix the infrastructure.

[castlegreyskull]

They built turtle tunnels near my dad’s house, to help turtles safely cross a busy street.

[faucetman]

Exactly right. Stimulus money went to teachers unions.

Remember “Shovel-ready was not as ... uh .. shovel-ready as we expected.” Lol, lol, lol. (Barack Mohammed Obama)

[KeyLargo]

ILLINOIS

Another GOPe Rino, Never Trumper that went on CNN and confirmed that he will not support Donald Trump for POTUS.

Kinzinger is just another little weasel punk that has turned on those in Illinois that worked for and supported him, which put him in office.

CHICAGO (AP) _ Illinois Congressman Adam Kinzinger says he cannot support Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

During an appearance Wednesday on CNN, Kinzinger said he is unlikely to vote for Trump because the nominee was “beginning to cross a lot of red lines of the unforgivable in politics.”

http://fox2now.com/2016/08/03/illinois-gop-congressman-says-he-cannot-support-donald-trump/

[sodpoodle]

****I am all for rebuilding OUR infrastructure!****

Move the unemployed off welfare, food stamps & all the other tax supported subsidies to real work for real wages.

Earn self-respect with ‘wages for work’. Especially target those inner city youth - who could become men.

On the job apprenticeships - Trump would be perfect to get this going.

[miss marmelstein]

That’s the difference. Trump has a record of actually building projects and completing them under budget and on time. Undoubtedly, Investors is going for Hillary.

[SoFloFreeper]

Not to quibble with the IBD editorial board, but Trump knows a thing or two about building things.

When he says he can put together a structure, he seems to know how and what to do...often on time, under budget, and with ACCOUNTABILITY.

I really don’t fear an enforcement of the “general welfare” clause under a Trump administration.

[taildragger]

OK, that is good but...

* DJT is taking of a new Gov't Bond to pay for this.
* Great but how do you pay back the Bond Holders ( us that buy them ) and pay the "Coupon" on the Bond even if it is a "Zero" Where is the income stream from these new roads to justify it.
* Also how will the roads be built, especially in Northern Climates.
* The EPA does not allow Coal Ash in Concrete which is a water dispersant and adds to the life of the road.
* Their are new high tech replacements for the ash, will they be mandatory?
* Will the roads be thicker more robust?

Answer these please Team Trump, I don't want to throw good money after bad....

[Oratam]

Our roads and bridge ARE crumbling. I’m all for infrastructure spending but it can’t come with all the strings that the O entangled those federal dollars with. He played politics with the money. Rebuild the goddam bridges, tunnels, highways, sewer and water treatment plants, etc. without any carrots and sticks.

[i_robot73]

I fall to see this, outside of postal roads, as being a Federal issue.

We’ve seen, time and time again, the effeciency and costs otherwise....but THIS time will be different, no?

[Lockbox]

Scandal: Less than 7% of Trillion-Dollar ‘Stimulus’ Spent on Infrastructure

Under Obama they lied, so easy for Trump to say he would actually spend twice what Hillary lies about spending.... but who knows where Hillary's money will go!

http://humanevents.com/2010/09/08/scandal-less-than-7-of-trilliondollar-stimulus-spent-on-infrastructure/

[gr8eman]

These people just take a bite of what Trump says and go all Chicken Little. Trump explained that when he flew into LaGuardia Airport it looked like a 3rd world country. He wants to slash the federal bureaucracy and rebuild our infrastructure...now who promised that before but it never happened.

[Religion and Politics]

Everything is “too hard to do”. Everything is “already great, never stopped being great”. We need to learn how to do hard things again, like fighting all the way to victory in WWII, and going to the moon in the sixties. Maybe the next few generations can do hard things that matter here without the waste, fraud, and bureaucracy. That is supposed to be the “peace dividend” handed down from when we were great. Too bad we already squandered that opportunity since the time where Reagan won our last big victory.

[babble-on]

Well, the theory is that income stream on the new roads comes from the higher GDP enabled by eliminating transportation bottlenecks that impair productivity in the economy. Higher GDP leads to higher tax receipts even at unchanged tax rates and those higher receipts mean that even a relatively low value added for these bridges that slow truck and commuter traffic will be sufficient at today’s interest rates to cover the nominal coupon and retire the debt at maturity. That’s the theory, mind you.