From that same article:
How Can They Keep the $7.5 Billion Bond Money?
There are legal issues around the $7.5 billion Proposition 1A bond measure.
The bond measure had legal requirements:
(1) Can the train travel from Los Angeles (Union Station) to San Francisco (Transbay Terminal) in two hours and 40 minutes?
(2) Will the train require an operational subsidy?
(3) Does the new “blended system” approach meet the definition of high-speed rail in Proposition 1A?
The 110 or 120-mile segment will not allow any train to travel from Los Angeles to San Francisco in two hours and 40 minutes. There is no way anything can operate on that line without an operational subsidy.
He'll need it to make up for what will be lacking in the amount flowing from DC to Sacramento.