Rahall: Out-build Other Nations, Not Rebuild Them
Washington, D.C. – U.S. Representative Nick J. Rahall (D-WV), Democratic leader of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, today released the following statement on President Obama’s State of the Union Address:
“America can continue to lead the worldwide economy and win the future, but we must at least invest as much in ourselves as our competitor nations are investing in their own futures. Certainly we need to tighten our budgetary belt, but it is folly to suggest, as some have, that we blindly slash investments in basic infrastructure – our roads and bridges, water systems and schools, and research and development – which are so vital to our long-term economic recovery. We should, instead, focus our limited resources and our energies on out-building other nations, rather than rebuilding them. We can boost competitiveness and trim the budget, but both will require concerted thought, backbone, and a willingness to compromise and reach a consensus that lives beyond the seating arrangements at the State of the Union.”
Ranking Member Rahall has been a Member of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for 34 years – his entire tenure in Congress. The Committee has broad jurisdiction over the Nation’s highways, railways, airports, seaports, bus lines, and pipelines, as well as the Economic Development Administration, Appalachian Regional Commission, Coast Guard, Army Corps of Engineers, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and other crucial economic development programs.
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