Biden Kicks off Stimulus-funded Renovation at His Favorite Train Station
EmailABC News’ Karen Travers reports: Vice President Biden touted the stimulus bill and defended investment in the nation’s rail system in remarks this morning at the official kick off of the restoration and renovation of the Wilmington train station. More than 700,000 passengers use the Wilmington train station every year, but none more famous than the vice president. Biden’s connection to Amtrak is well-known – he took the train back and forth between Wilmington and Washington for several decades, over 7,000 round trips, as a senator and still uses the train to get back there even know as vice president. Biden, who spent the weekend at his Wilmington home, said today that the last three weeks were the longest stretch he has gone, since he was 32 years old, without taking an Amtrak train. "It’s the first time ever I have been — three weekends in a row I haven’t been home," he said. The timetable for scheduled work at the Wilmington station was moved up because of $20 million in federal money from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the White House said today. Biden said that he and Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del) and Rep. Mike Castle (R-Del) worked hard to get funding for the station renovation but the project can begin now because of the stimulus bill and will create jobs. "We have no time to wait. We cannot wait. That’s what the Recovery Act is about," Biden said. As he has in the past, Biden defended federal subsidies for Amtrak and said there are greater subsidies put toward the airline industry and national highway system. The always-loquacious Blue Hen told a story about how every time a vote on Amtrak would come up in the Senate, former Sen. Bob Dole would put a note on the Republican desk in the Well of the Senate that explained what the vote was: "Vote to keep Biden in Delaware," the vice president said the note read. "That was his great sense of humor, because he pointed out if Amtrak ever stopped running, Biden would move to Washington. Then that would be hell for everyone. Well, I’m now in Washington," Biden said to laughter.
– Karen Travers
CPAC: Romney Struggles to Convince Voters 
Obama Backs Off Birth Control Battle?
If anyone is harboring the delusion that the Obama indebtedness will not have disastrous consequences, think again. This is from MoneyNews:
“By: Dan Weil
“Faced with a staggering national debt relative to the rest of the world, Buffett says the U.S. government will do what every country that has denominated its debt in its own currency has done — ‘inflate its way out of the burden of that debt.’
“The explosive rise of the U.S. budget deficit and debt burden will lead to serious inflation down the road, says billionaire and Obama supporter Warren Buffett.
“The Congressional Budget Office predicts that government debt will peak around 54 percent of GDP in 2011.
“But Buffett told CNBC Monday morning that the ratio could surpass 80 percent — unless there are significant spending cuts or tax increases.
“After a testy exchange with Sen. Judd Gregg, who suggested that President Obama’s plans to hike federal spending would only increase the nation’s staggering national debt, Buffett relented by stating that, in the end, the U.S. government simply will do what every other government has done in such circumstances.
“’A country that continuously expands its debt as a percentage of GDP and raises much of the money abroad to finance that, at some point, it’s going to inflate its way out of the burden of that debt,’ Buffett said.
“Experience proves that, he points out.”
You think anybody in this administration cares about that? Not while they can spread the borrowed money around and keep the yokels fooled.
Posted by: Fascist Hyena | May 4, 2009, 6:32 pm 6:32 pm
A tidbit for those purists who believe lobbyists to be a morally inferior species:
“Democratic lawmakers who spent much of the Bush administration blasting officials for letting energy lobbyists write national policy have turned to a coalition of business and environmental groups to help draft their own sweeping climate bill.
“And one little-noticed provision of the draft bill would give one of the coalition’s co-founders a lucrative exemption on a coal-fired project it is building.”
When will Mr. Obama express his concern? Or, in his view, does the democratic congress have a permanent moral waiver?
Posted by: Fascist Hyena | May 4, 2009, 6:41 pm 6:41 pm
“Democratic lawmakers who spent much of the Bush administration blasting officials for letting energy lobbyists”
If its from the Moonie Times, it can safely be ignored.
Here’s the part that the Moonie Times claims is dubious…it is of course buried at the end of the article because of what political hacks they are.
“The House draft bill says any coal plant that obtains final construction approval after Jan. 1, 2009, must meet the stringent pollution control rules. Duke Energy has two new coal projects under way, both of which obtained their permits in January 2008.
Duke Energy Chief Executive Officer Jim Rogers has been an influential voice in the Hill debate over climate change. When he testified last month on a panel of USCAP members, he did not mention the provision, which directly affects the Cliffside plant.
The exemption would benefit 45 other coal facilities that are under construction or have received permits (including a second Duke Energy project in Indiana), but Duke Energy is the only affected company that belongs to USCAP.”
Posted by: Ryan C | May 4, 2009, 6:56 pm 6:56 pm
Hyena,
I think the 80%+ Debt-to-GDP scenario is more likely given (a.) over-optimistic growth projections, (b.) rampant inflation, (c.) increasing debt servicing costs (lenders will require higher rates of return as risk increases).
This level of debt-to-GDP will put us on par with such economic luminaries as Argentina and Bolivia…great company*
*nothing against either country – I’ve been to both and they are each beautiful – just not the type of countries one would like to be compared against as a potential economic peer
Posted by: tjp612 | May 4, 2009, 7:02 pm 7:02 pm
“Well, at some point you have to have tax revenues that are a whole lot closer to expenditures and you can get that in two ways, and both ways are unpleasant.”
This statement can be interpreted two ways. Here is a how Liberals and Conservatives would interpret:
Liberals: Increase taxes to level of expenditures (i.e., grow government)
Conservatives: Reduce expenditures (i.e., size/influence of government) to avoid tax increases
Ryan – If I remember correctly, you are a resident of the State of California. Which course has California taken and with what results?
(please feel free to note any “right-wing lies” as you see fit)
Posted by: tjp612 | May 4, 2009, 7:21 pm 7:21 pm
“Liberals: Increase taxes to level of expenditures (i.e., grow government)”
This isn’t entirely accurate – it would maintain the size of government at it’s current level of services and military funding.
The current level of government has been being paid for on the credit card since Reagan, with a brief pause in the debt under Clinton (arguably due to just his luck to be in office during the internet boom).
Make no mistake the choice we have: higher taxes or FAR FEWER services (and/or smaller military).
Posted by: jhw539 | May 4, 2009, 9:26 pm 9:26 pm
tjp612:” Which course has California taken and with what results?”
They have maintained taxes at the level required for services. As a result, they have the infrastructure to support the most productive industry in the country (although Washington state made a run at it with Microsoft and it’s spinoffs, the internet boom firmly took CA back to the top). It also has a public University system that is quite literally the envy of the world – a lure of talent from around the world and a significant source of ‘export’ dollars.
Their current budget deficit problems mean they have had to cut way back (states can’t really run a deficit), but even if you can only drive the Porsche 4000 miles a year rather than 6000, you’re still driving a Porsche. The biggest legitimate gripe I’ve heard about CA is the cost of living is too high – because so many people want to live there!
Posted by: jhw539 | May 4, 2009, 9:31 pm 9:31 pm
Reuters:
Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives will seek passage in coming weeks of $94.2 billion in emergency money for the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and other programs, including $2 billion more to prepare for an influenza pandemic.
=====================================
No money for closing Gitmo.
Posted by: mad | May 4, 2009, 10:30 pm 10:30 pm
“The biggest legitimate gripe I’ve heard about CA is the cost of living is too high – because so many people want to live there!”
From George Will’s latest…
For four consecutive years, more Americans have moved out of California than have moved in. California’s business costs are more than 20 percent higher than the average state’s. In the past decade, net out-migration of Americans has been 1.4 million. California is exporting talent while importing Mexico’s poverty. The latter is not California’s fault; the former is.
Posted by: Foghorn Leghorn | May 5, 2009, 12:35 am 12:35 am
Foghorn Leghorn
quoting George Will? L O L
you need to check out old George’s opinion & prognostication record over the years, it’s not very good….. and it does offer much for future reliability either.
Posted by: Truuf | May 5, 2009, 1:36 am 1:36 am
“you need to check out old George’s opinion & prognostication record over the years, it’s not very good….. and it does offer much for future reliability either.”
The quote was void of prognostication and had precious little opinion. It did have some facts. Do you dispute them?
Posted by: Foghorn Leghorn | May 5, 2009, 1:42 am 1:42 am
Biden is the worse Vice President in this history. The stimulus money won’t work to fix the train station. They won’t be half way to finish the train station. They will be losing money.
Posted by: anonymous | May 5, 2009, 4:58 am 4:58 am
Wait a minute, Joe! Yuo said that mass transit (lots of people in small confined spaces) spreads Swine Flu!
Posted by: Welcome to Cinco de Cuatro at the White House | May 5, 2009, 8:58 am 8:58 am
“California is exporting talent while importing Mexico’s poverty.”
Yeah, but that’s mostly Southern California. So…y’know…who cares? Although, the dot com bust certainly resulted in the bay area losing some talent.
Posted by: Silky | May 5, 2009, 9:12 am 9:12 am
Maybe we could turn the Gitmo ‘detainees’ into ‘Blue Hens’..
get them jobs enforcing the credit card bill of rights – that would be torture.
Posted by: DontGet818OnMeNow | May 5, 2009, 9:31 am 9:31 am