Without mentioning them by name, White House infrastructure czar Mitch Landrieu appeared to respond to a letter from 16 GOP governors cautioning against excessive consideration of “equity, union memberships, or climate” in infrastructure.
Landrieu met with President Joe Biden, Vice President Kamala Harris, and other members of a task force that will dole out some $1.2 trillion for infrastructure projects. Most of the hourlong meeting was closed to the press, but Landrieu spoke as it began on topics raised in the governors’ letter.
“You asked us not just to rebuild America,” Landrieu said, according to White House pool reports. He added, “You asked us to rebuild a better America,” one he described as rife with “good-paying union jobs” and resurgent “domestic manufacturing.”
He continued: “It also means not doing anything without a sense of equity and an understanding that we can’t go forward if we can’t go forward together — because diversity is this nation’s greatest strength.”
GOP GOVERNORS TO WHITE HOUSE: COOPERATE WITH STATES ON INFRASTRUCTURE ROLLOUT
Finally, Landrieu referenced the “tremendous challenges we have with climate and resilience and sustainability” while also promising “accountability and transparency,” including working with inspectors general to see funds properly disbursed “to regain the public trust.”
“We’re ready to get the job done,” Landrieu added, at which point the press left.
The $1.2 trillion Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act is being rolled out throughout the nation, implementing a new era of major construction via a bill that enjoyed bipartisan support, especially in the Senate. The governors asked the Biden administration to draft regulations and guidance that “defer to the states” and focus on innovation rather than regulation.
The letter said the Biden administration “should not attempt to push a social agenda through hard infrastructure investments and instead should consider economically sound principles that align with state priorities.”
Bipartisanship helped lead to the infrastructure bill’s passage. It attracted the votes of 19 GOP senators and wouldn’t have passed the House without the help of 13 Republicans. The bill boosts infrastructure spending as a percentage of gross domestic product to its highest point since the 1980s.
Landrieu is now charged with leading the project rollout across all 50 states following a generally successful run as mayor of New Orleans. Earlier in the week, he said he’d met with more than 40 governors and that the meetings went well.
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“As I said, I have personally spoke to over 40 governors — three their chiefs of staff,” Landrieu said Tuesday. “I’ve talked to a number of Republican governors — all of whom, in the reddest of red states, were very welcoming. They were very appreciative that the president had asked to call.”
