tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-552358014685805851.post2003241320395071318..comments2023-11-05T02:35:48.009-05:00Comments on Track Twenty-Nine: LaHood Tapped as DOT HeadMatt'http://www.blogger.com/profile/15011703558247093148noreply@blogger.comBlogger3125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-552358014685805851.post-85455405280179452272008-12-18T10:54:00.000-05:002008-12-18T10:54:00.000-05:00Matt, I feel your pain. I had extremely high hopes...Matt, I feel your pain. I had extremely high hopes for who could have potentially been Transportation Secretary (my favorite was Blumenauer); nevertheless, your past few posts expressing serious disappointment with Obama got me thinking.<BR/><BR/>In an ideal world, with the right appointments, government could wave a magic wand and satisfy all of us urbanists instantly. I'm afraid the political game simply isn't that simple. At first glance the LaHood appointment appears to be a slap in the face to anyone hoping for a much more progressive approach to transportation. However, there are still a few things worth considering:<BR/><BR/>First, we still don't know who is going to be the Administrator of the Federal Transit Administration. It could be possible for Obama to use that position, rather than Transportation Secretary, to push a more progressive urban agenda. Second, it is entirely possible that transportation issues, particularly urban transportation issues, could be handled out of an entirely different executive office. In that case it would make sense to appoint someone like LaHood to oversee the airlines, interstates, etc. and let someone with more urban experience handle the urban issues. Third, transit issues are often held up by stubborn congressional Republicans (people like McCain who think we ought to privatize Amtrak or people like Coburn who don’t think we should fund WMATA or other agencies with federal dollars); putting an extremist as the head of DOT probably won’t help to win these individuals over.<BR/><BR/>Finally, I think you have done good work on this blog, so please don’t take this the wrong way; but your last few posts have almost confirmed the perceived snobbish attitude that leads a lot of folks to distrust urbanists with otherwise good intentions. When I voted for Obama I knew that on transportation issues 1) they couldn’t be worse than under McCain and 2) that it was really a roll of the dice as to whether or not any real progress would get made during the first term. Campaign rhetoric is usually just that: rhetoric. Setting your expectations too high ultimately leads to the disappointments you now seem to be experiencing.Rob Pitingolohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10273110931175509169noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-552358014685805851.post-23838746932869187242008-12-18T09:53:00.000-05:002008-12-18T09:53:00.000-05:00LaHood has been generally supportive of Amtrak in ...LaHood has been generally supportive of Amtrak in later years, but it wasn't always that way. Amtrak didn't win itself a lot of friends Downstate back in the 80s, when LaHood was House minority leader Bob Michel's chief of staff. Amtrak wanted to charge the state an outrageous amount of money to restore the "Peoria Rocket," a daily train between Peoria and Chicago. The Rocket service ended in the late 70s when the Rock Island was in its death throes. Rock Island didn't join Amtrak (the program was voluntary) and kept running its own passenger trains for a while, including the "Rocket." <BR/><BR/>Like I said, in later years, LaHood has generally been an Amtrak supporter and has supported the Midwest HSR initiative. That's about all I know about LaHood's views on transportation, and besides we don't know how much his personal views will impact on the running of the department, or whether he will have free rein to select deputies, etc. On the latter topic, I suspect he will be on a short leash.Paul Wilsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15876576362745819207noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-552358014685805851.post-11315796599693896012008-12-18T03:57:00.000-05:002008-12-18T03:57:00.000-05:00I tend to lean toward Ryan Avent and Beyond DC wit...I tend to lean toward Ryan Avent and Beyond DC with regard to the stimulus, however, I am wholeheartedly disturbed by this appointment. The only blurbs I've seen on his appointment focus on fixing the airline industry, which is infuriating. A rep from a rural part of the Midwest with virtually no transportation bills to his credit, when people like Blumenauer, Oberstar, and Jeanette Sadik-Khan were the favorites. I get more disgusted with his cabinet with every pick (except Bill Richardson).Davemurphyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07331653772702609738noreply@blogger.com