Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

How Strategic Reforms Can Generate $1.1 Trillion in Infrastructure Investment
The Heritage Foundation ^ | May 8, 2017 | Michael Sargent and Nicolas Loris

Posted on 05/04/2019 3:02:10 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Infrastructure improvements are perennial fodder for politicians on the stump looking to appeal to voters. However, composing a detailed, effective investment plan that goes beyond rhetoric is a much more daunting task that requires careful consideration. President Trump has made it clear he wants to undertake a “new program of national rebuilding” by investing $1 trillion in infrastructure.1 Although the President has stated this funding would be drawn from both public and private sources, he has yet to put forth a detailed plan.

Democrats in Congress have seized on the opportunity to put forward their own proposal on infrastructure. This proposal calls for an additional $1 trillion spent on infrastructure, paid for by an undisclosed tax increase on corporations and top individual income earners.2

This past presidential election hinged on a change in the status quo. An infrastructure agenda that repeats the mistake-ridden spending plans of the past would be misguided. A top-down, tax-and-spend approach is inefficient, politically driven, and results in poor infrastructure outcomes that are not aligned with real needs. The folly of this approach is well-illustrated by the stimulus plan for “shovel ready” infrastructure, which even President Obama acknowledged “was not as shovel ready as we expected.”3 Doubling down on this approach would only further perpetuate the fundamental problems with infrastructure funding and financing in the U.S.

Instead, the recommendations in this Backgrounder serve as an alternative roadmap to large-scale infrastructure spending without adverse impact on the federal budget. They span a wide variety of assets—from airports and harbors to energy infrastructure—and draw on both private and public funding sources . . .

(Excerpt) Read more at heritage.org ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Extended News; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: airports; aviation; braodband; cleanup; davisbacon; deregulation; energy; environment; infrastructure; nuclearwaste; plas; spending; transportation; unions; waterways
Full title:

Driving Investment, Fueling Growth: How Strategic Reforms Can Generate $1.1 Trillion in Infrastructure Investment

Ajit Pai, by this time, already did his heavy lifting in repealing Net Neutrality, and Trump has opened up some areas to offshore exploration and drilling, although some of those areas were then effectively closed back down by a nosy, black-robed git.

1 posted on 05/04/2019 3:02:10 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks
eliminate the NEA, dept of energy, HUD, and the list goes on and on and on
2 posted on 05/04/2019 3:04:31 PM PDT by Chode ( WeÂ’re America, Bitch!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Here in Washington state we had a Public Works Trust Fund. The state would put in $100 million and loan it out at nominal interest over 20 years. It should have been self sustaining but the state would take the payments and put them back in the general fund. Until they finally quit funding it all together.

The feds could do the same thing but the congress critters would just steal it blind as well.

So lets raise taxes instead.


3 posted on 05/04/2019 3:12:35 PM PDT by shotgun
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: BobL; sphinx; GreenLanternCorps; oldvirginian

Global warmunists (alt energy pushers) and transit advocates suffer under these stifling regulations as much as drivers and truckers do.


4 posted on 05/04/2019 3:13:47 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks (Modern feminism: ALL MEN BAD!!!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

Kick out the illegals first.

Then let the individual states figure out what they need upgrades on — and have them pay for it themselves!


5 posted on 05/04/2019 3:14:52 PM PDT by 9YearLurker
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

No, it isn’t. Not anymore. What I want in my candidate is deportation of illegals and visa over stayers. We wouldn’t need infrastructure “improvements”, aka tax dollar$$$$$$$$$$$$, with them gone.


6 posted on 05/04/2019 3:14:54 PM PDT by bgill (when you badmouth women, you are badmouthing your mama and the good women on FR)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: bgill

You do know that road building unions control the contracts and continuously fix the same things they fixed previously because they are money makers for them ... what we all would like to see happen, won’t.

So it really does not matter how much money is spent or how many illegals are deported, the unions will continue to bid on, win and then inflate contracts which make them the most money, not necessarily what actually needs to be repaired.


7 posted on 05/04/2019 3:46:34 PM PDT by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now it is your turn ...)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

The a##clowns shovel ready like solyndra went to his friends and funders as payback. The rats proposal.................tax tax tax tax tax


8 posted on 05/04/2019 4:28:40 PM PDT by ronnie raygun (nicdip.com)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

I’m just afraid this will end up being a hidden bailout to those states on the verge of bankruptcy.


9 posted on 05/04/2019 5:39:23 PM PDT by Oatka
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: Tolerance Sucks Rocks

None of the proposals are bad.

Frankly I don’t need the dollar values for the recommendations or their value to “infrastructure development” to support them.

I think they could be good for infrastructure, as an indirect consequence of doing them just because they are right to do on their own merit.


10 posted on 05/05/2019 8:02:15 AM PDT by Wuli
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

$875 billion in 2009, $1 trillion in 2019.
A pattern emerging?


11 posted on 05/05/2019 8:27:53 AM PDT by misanthrope (Deranged, sinister deplorable)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 10 | View Replies]

To: misanthrope

The 875 billion stimulus included indirect payouts to the teachers’ unions (school funding), various other payouts, and a variety of items besides roadwork. The “shovel-ready” roadwork only amounted to between $20B and $30B out of the $875B


12 posted on 05/05/2019 12:13:52 PM PDT by Tolerance Sucks Rocks (Modern feminism: ALL MEN BAD!!!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 11 | View Replies]

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson