Senator Kerry's Act is Defective

Senator John Kerry (D - Mass) has introduced a new version of the National Infrastructure Bank in Senate Bill 652. The 'short" title of the bill is "Building and Upgrading Infrastructure for Long Term Development" but the Senator from Massachusetts refers to it as the "Build Act".

The primary mechanism of this bill is the establishment of a government agency, euphemistically called a corporation, which is given the name "American Infrastructure Financing Authority." This agency is headed by a panel of seven presidential appointees (with the advice and consent of the U.S. Senate) not more than four of which can be from one political party. According to the text of the proposed legislation, five votes are necessary to approve funding for an infrastructure project. The purpose of this act is made clear on Senator Kerry's web page:

The BUILD Act is a bold solution that establishes an American Infrastructure Financing Authority (AIFA) - a type of infrastructure bank - to complement our existing infrastructure funding. This institution, which would provide loans and loan guarantees, would be both fiscally responsible and robust enough to address America’s needs. AIFA is independent of the political process.

Thus, Senator Kerry and his co-authors desire to short circuit the representative process set out in the constitution. The goal, get tax payers on the hook for money borrowed under the full faith and credit and doled out by this unelected panel. The bill authorizes this agency to spend $10 billion a year for the first two years, $20 billion a year for years 3 through 9, and $50 billion a year thereafter. Where is that money coming from?

Contact your Senator and ask them to stop Senate bill 652 dead in its tracks.

Obama Still Wants National Infrastructure Bank

This morning President Barack Obama introduced something he calls the "The American Jobs Act". The applicable portion of which reads:

The President is calling for Congress to pass a National Infrastructure Bank capitalized with $10 billion, in order to leverage private and public capital and to invest in a broad range of infrastructure projects of nationaland regional significance, without earmarks or traditional political influence. The Bank would be based on the model Senators Kerry and Hutchison have championed while building on legislation by Senators Rockefeller and Lautenberg and the work of long-time infrastructure bank champions like Rosa DeLauro and the input of the President’s Jobs Council.

Now is the time for all people interested in preserving representative democracy to ACT! Contact your Senators and Congressional Representatives and urge them to defeat the National Infrastructure Bank.

President Obama Fails to Mention National Infrastructure Bank

In what must be a significant blow to the Connecticut congressional delegation, and his old buddy Ex-Senator Chris Dodd, President Obama completely neglected the National Infrastructure Bank in his speech Thursday evening.

This is unlikely to mean that the measure will die in Congress, but let's hope vigilant citizens keep the press on their elected representatives to keep our Constitution promise. Our elected representatives represent our interest in Congress by deciding how, when, and where our tax money in spent. Not by delegating this responsibility to an unelected committee of bureaucrats.

PresidentObama Set to Resurrect National Infrastructure Bank

Tonight, President Barack Obama will propose a "jobs" package that is sure to, among other things, urge passing of the National Infrastructure Bank by Congress. Why won't the President let this bad idea die? As discussed elsewhere on this blog, President Obama was oblivious to this so-called bank until in a few day span in the spring of 2008, Senator Chris Dodd dropped out of the presidential race, Candidate Obama endorsed the National Infrastructure Bank, and the next Monday then Senator Obama was listed as co-sponsor on this otherwise dead piece of legislation. Despite that backing, the Bank was not included in the President's stimulus plan nor could pass on its own merits. The reasons are clear:

* It will not be a bank, but rather a government agency staffed with bureaucrats and political appointees.

* It will issue debt backed by the full faith and credit and of the United States, meaning that's our money their spending.

* It will result in infrastructure spending be allocated by an unelected committee rather than by the votes of our Representatives.

Please contact your elected representatives today. Urge them to block passage of this bad idea. Tell them you expect infrastructure spending by the United States Government to voted on in Congress by your elected representatives.