Obama to Rick Scott: Bite Me

[peace frog]

Source: Huffington Post

White House To Rick Scott: We'll Spend Florida's High-Speed Rail Money Elsewhere


WASHINGTON -- In a bit of political hardball, the Obama administration on Wednesday said it would send $2.4 billion in stimulus money to other states should Florida Gov. Rick Scott not back down on his rejection of the federal government's national high-speed rail project.

Speaking just hours after Scott announced he was abandoning the project due to cost concerns for the state, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney relayed the president's preparedness to simply send the allocated money to other locales rather than, say, use it to lower the federal deficit.

"We think that is an unfortunate decision," Carney said. "This goes right to the essence of what we have been talking about here. There has been a lot of bipartisan support for the need to create the kind of modern infrastructure in this country that will enable us to compete. High speed rail is very much a part of that and we will make sure that that money is used elsewhere to advance the infrastructure and innovation agenda that is essential for economic growth.

"We believe that the money that is allocated for high-speed rail as part of the Recovery Act is essential to the infrastructure agenda that this president has," Carney added later. "Again, it is part of the president's priority and it is essential to us to build an infrastructure that allows us to compete in the 21st Century."



Read more: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/16/white-house-to-rick-scott_n_824150.html

[Blue Owl]

1. Rick Scott Walker

The FLA and WIS governors are both clones from the same rancid turd.

[AnOhioan]

9. Don't forget Ohio Gov. Kasich...he ranks right down there

[Doremus]

18. According to LaTourette, Kasich is thinking a lakefront RR connecting

Toledo, Cleveland, Buffalo, etc. might not be such a bad thing after all.

Translation: LaTourette is taking heat from constituents who are pissed Kasich said no to thousands of jobs and so he conjured this hopeful sound byte out of whole cloth to pacify them til things blow over.

[AnOhioan]

19. If that high speed rail ever comes to fruition, it will.....

piss off all the conservatives in southern Ohio. (chuckle)

[Guilded Lilly]

22. and we Northeast Ohioans can wave Southward as we enjoy the ride :)

[MellowDem]

23. It'll piss off the liberals too...

especially considering it's a lot less practical. Columbus and Cincinnati are much bigger cities with bigger economies. And I can't stand those northern Ohio conservatives, mainly because they should know better.

[AnOhioan]

29. The line will eventually connect NYC and Chicago

hardly minor cities. Let me say on record that I supported the prior Three-C line as well.

[hedgehog]

35. By way of a Buffalo-Detroit line through Ontario?

How about a spur to Toranto-Montreal?

[JDPriestly]

36. Great idea!

[whathehell]

51. Good...His constituents should be pissed. n/t

[AngryOldDem]

24. As a former Ohioan....

I think the decision to turn down high-speed rail is about the most stupid, myopic, and clueless thing any governor can do. If Kasich can't see the benefits of connecting many of Ohio's biggest cities then I suggest he travel up and down the I-75 corridor, especially between Dayton and Cincinnati.

[DJ13]

2. California says thank you governor dumbshit

And if any of you other red states refuse the money we'll take yours as well.

[JDPriestly]

38. Yes, we need a train out of Los Angeles that doesn't end in San Luis Obispo.

It would be nice to be able to travel by train from San Diego up to Portland in a reasonable amount of time.

Even when you fly, you have to change planes all to often, and it should be a pretty direct route.

[Ian David]

3. I wonder what Disney thinks of Gov. Scott nerfing the rail link to Orlando? n/t

[peace frog]

47. Disney is none too pleased but has remained largely silent

on the subject. OTOH Tampa area residents, who had really banked on the rail and put their money where their hopes were, are well and truly pissed.

[inademv]

4. Floridian here

So Scott's first budgetary move is to kill hundreds of construction jobs? Where in the conservative mind does this work?

[Commie Pinko Dirtbag]

5. I'll tell you where.

It's in the part that holds the axiom "If X makes poor people's lives miserable, then X is good."

[nyc 4 Biden]

10. Ask Chris Christie. n/t

[gateley]

21. Welcome to DU, inademv! nt

[SkyDaddy7]

30. It is all about whatever Obama is for then they are against...

Even if they were for it to begin with they will switch positions if Obama supports it!

[peace frog]

43. We're in for a miserable, frustrating four years under Scott

and twice as long if he's re-elected, unless a miracle happens and Florida loses its teabaggers.

NAH! Couldn't get that lucky.

[Dappleganger]

46. He promised to bring 750,000 new jobs to the state...

don't you get the math???

BTW, fellow Floridian here and welcome to DU. :hi:

[Mojorabbit]

48. Email him here

http://www.flgov.com/contact-gov-scott/email-the-governor/

and let him know how you feel about him giving away this job creating money and what poor vision for the future he has. I sure did.

[brooklynite]

6. I have to give this critique to the Obama Administration...

By spreading HSR money all over the country, it makes it easier for Governors to opt out because no state is getting enough money to actually build anything to completion. Find one state where HSR can be implemented and where the State authorities want it, give THEM the money and watch the demand rachet up once its actually running.

[Sonoman]

7. Ah, let 'em fly First Class. eom

[bluestateguy]

8. I see them sending it to a swing state that will take the money

My bet is on Colorado or North Carolina or possibly Missouri.

Any betting people?

It was stupid to give governors the ability to reject the money in the stimulus anyway.

[itsrobert]

13. Maybe Nevada will get that high speed rail to LA afterall?

linking into the SF/LA hsr.

[bluestateguy]

15. If the Republican governor takes the money

I'd almost like to see the Administration just dole out the money for states to plug their budget deficits. That right there would save jobs.

[blackspade]

11. Rick Scott....

Doing right by Florida.... as usual. NOT!

[Reader Rabbit]

12. The Pacific Northwest would love to have that money.

I wonder if Oregon & Washington would be allowed to split it.

[efhmc]

14. Finally.

[TheCowsCameHome]

16. How do you like them apples, Rick?

You're a Sap.

[Guilded Lilly]

17. Good. Rick doesn't want the money...

and attached jobs created?...then give the money to a state that does. Tough crap Mr. Scott. Let your state wallow due to your (fill in the blank) attitude that anything offered by a Democratic Administration is to be rejected.

The idiot in Ohio did that same damn thing. And being an Ohioan I had to shake my head at the creeping crud of Republican rule that is spreading back over the Ohio countryside.

[NewJeffCT]

20. We could use some more rail money here in CT

we have to do something about traveling by rail between New Haven, CT and NYC

[DainBramaged]

25. America to Rick Scott, get your head out of your 19th Century ass

:spank:


Scott and Christie, to douche bag Repukes who think their agenda of job destruction is good for their states.

[Ter]

26. Gotta unrec for false title

Not allowed in LBN.

[Mugweed]

27. And I'm probably out of a job.

Not just me, but a lot of others here in FL who were working specifically on this project. Rick Scott appears to be bleeding this state of jobs. I was actually revising construction costs this morning for each Early Works and the DBOMF portion of the project when our company president walked into my office looking like someone shot his dog. Thankfully I have a few other projects to turn to (although all of them are very short-term), but the emergency partners meeting that was held tells me that a new round of layoffs is in the making.

[catzies]

40. That really sucks and I'm really sorry

That's a big goddamn shame. My sympathies and best of luck.

[peace frog]

28. No flies on Chuck Schumer

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/16/white-house-to-rick-scott_n_824150.html

UPDATE: Sure enough, on Wednesday, Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) released a statement urging the Obama administration to redirect the more than $2 billion in high-speed rail funds from Florida to New York:

Florida's loss should be New York's gain. Other states may not be ready to unlock the potential of high-speed rail, but it is a top priority for upstate New York. We can put these funds to use in a way that gets the best bang for the buck. The administration should redirect these funds to New York as quickly as possible.

:evilgrin:

[Mugweed]

32. Good for him

Florida is the only state that actually has an accepted Environmental Impact Statement and several other key documents that no other state is close to having completed. We were actually the only state in the nation that had all their shit together. Thanks to all the dedicated engineers and scientists who saw the vision of the future and worked tirelessly over the last 10 years to make this happen...only to get shit on by the governor.

[and-justice-for-all]

31. Those opposed to the high speed rail project

should be tarred and feathered with being 'against job creation'.

[newtothegame]

33. What would be Florida's financial liability for the project? nt

[Mugweed]

37. About $66 million has been spent already

according to the Orlando Sentinel. That's all invoiced to FDOT, which will now be paid by state funds not federal stimulus dollars.

[newtothegame]

34. This probably needs to be moved to GD if it's going to have a misleading title. nt

[underpants]

39. I am reminded of Gov. Allen's "principled" rejection of Federal education money

Virginia schools predictably slipped for a number of years until they started taking money again.

[peace frog]

41. Right on, Bill

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/02/16/white-house-to-rick-scott_n_824150.html

All of which has caused Democrats in Florida to lash back at their newly elected governor for his conservative braggadocio.

"It's eating our seed corn," said Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), referencing the colloquialism that when times are tough, and one is hungry, you're supposed to plant seeds for crop, not eat them.

[peace frog]

42. BTW

To my anonymous benefactor: Thanks for the heart! :hi:

[ljm2002]

44. Nevada could use it...

...I'd love to see us get a Las Vegas to Los Angeles connection. Preferably the super high speed maglev type.

[DaveJ]

45. Rethugs will want rail eventually

Although they do not think oil will run out (they seem to think it's given to us by space aliens). In a few years rail will be the only economical option.

[lovelyrita]

49. I live between Orlando and Tampa.

We need jobs and we need public transportation. Even some of the Republicans in the Florida legislature seem shocked that Rick Scott wants to turn down the money.

[DirkGently]

50. Unfortunately, it is Floridians will get bit.