President Obama was in Cincinnati, Ohio today to talk about the urgent need to improve America’s infrastructure. The American Jobs Act includes a $50 billion investment in much needed infrastructure enhancements which will put people to work rebuilding America.
The President was speaking in front of the Brent Spence Bridge, which connects Ohio with Kentucky, and has been classified as “functionally obsolete.” While it is safe to drive on, the Brent Spence wasn’t designed to accommodate today’s traffic, which can stretch for a mile. Cincinnati’s mayor has said it needs to be rebuilt. And so do substandard roads and bridges all across America. As the President said today, America can do better:
We used to have the best infrastructure in the world here in America. We’re the country that built the Intercontinental Railroad, the Interstate Highway System. We built the Hoover Dam. We built the Grand Central Station. So how can we now sit back and let China build the best railroads? And let Europe build the best highways? And have Singapore build a nicer airport? At a time when we've got millions of unemployed construction workers out there just ready to get on the job, ready to do the work to rebuilding America.
So, Cincinnati, we are better than that. We're smarter than that. And that’s why I sent Congress the American Jobs Act 10 days ago. This bill is not that complicated. It's a bill that would put people back to work rebuilding America — repairing our roads, repairing our bridges, repairing our schools. It would lead to jobs for concrete workers like the ones here at Hilltop; jobs for construction workers and masons, carpenters, plumbers, electricians, architects, engineers, ironworkers — put folks back to work.
People in the crowd listen as President Barack Obama delivers remarks on the American Jobs Act at the Brent Spence Bridge, that spans the Ohio River between Cincinnati, Ohio and Covington, Ky., Sept. 22, 2011. (Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton)
The American Jobs Act contains three key infrastructure components:
- A $50 billion immediate investment in rebuilding America’s roadways, railways, transit systems and airports.
- A National Infrastructure Bank, with $10 billion in upfront funding, based on the model that Senators Kerry and Hutchison have championed with bi-partisan support in the Senate.
- President Obama has already directed departments and agencies to identify high impact, job-creating infrastructure projects that can be fast-tracked through the review and permitting processes.
Fonte: White House