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Sen. Cory Booker: Country ‘Falling Behind Dramatically’ on Infrastructure
Last week’s deadly Amtrak crash was a reminder that lawmakers need to focus on restoring the country’s aging infrastructure, New Jersey Democrat Sen. Cory Booker said on Meet the Press May 17.
“The United States of America is falling behind dramatically,” Booker told Chuck Todd, the program’s host. “We are losing economic competitiveness, we are losing out on growth, so let’s leave that partisan argument aside for a second.”
Booker and other Democrats called for more spending for infrastructure projects around the country after the May 12 Amtrak crash in Philadelphia. Republicans in control of both chambers say they will await the National Transportation Safety Board to see what caused the accident.
COVERAGE OF Infrastructure Week
House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) dismissed the premise that under investments in infrastructure played a role in the crash.
“Obviously, it’s not about funding. The train was going twice the speed limit. Adequate funds were there. No funding has been cut from rail safety,” the speaker told reporters May 14.
Last week, thousands of stakeholders were in Washington to press lawmakers to invest more in infrastructure.