12/17/2020
New Lifeline to US Infrastructure?
President-elect Joe Biden’s appointment of Pete Buttigieg to lead the U.S. Transportation Department is spurring optimism for a major infrastructure program. The question is will it run into the same roadblocks that have blocked it for years: funding and politics?
If his appointment got confirmed by the Senate, Buttigieg will take over an agency that has a nearly $90 billion budget and is well-placed to take the lead in convincing Congress to approve a large enough infrastructure package to fulfill Biden’s campaign pledges.
Early in his term, Trump proposed a $1 trillion infrastructure plan, funded mostly by private investment that never won approval.