AEA Congratulates the other Joe on Infrastructure “Win”

“Congratulations to Joe on the passage of the trillion-dollar spending bill. Not President Joe Biden, but the other Joe from West Virginia. The bill, like Senator Manchin himself, is an old-timey brand of Democratic party legislating:  spend a lot of money across preferred special interests and constituencies. Meanwhile, American families will get very little in return. 

“Senator Manchin doesn’t deserve all the credit, however. I would be remiss to ignore the contribution of Senator Krysten Sinema, the Arizona Democrat who worked hard to attract GOP Senate support for the bloated bill. And finally, the baker’s dozen House Republicans who provided Speaker Pelosi the necessary votes to get the bill over the finish line.

“Spending with no return is the theme of this bill. Tens of billions for rail, which few Americans choose, let alone use. It seems Congress insists on repeating and expanding the fantastically expensive bullet train boondoggle in California. Expanding mass transit in our largest cities, which forces people together, in an era of pandemic and physical distancing is mindboggling. Even the spending on actual highways, a mere 10% or so of the total bill, is likely to net only a limited gain.” 

“This infrastructure bill does nothing to fix the actual problems facing America today and those which voters are most concerned about: the supply chain crisis and rocketing inflation. That this wasteful and unnecessary legislation has consumed the attention of Congress for half the year is an indictment of the institution. We can only hope that wasted time and wasted money are the only consequences of this legislation.”