Charlotte roads: Endangered species Obama, Raleigh must act upon

December 9, 9:28 AMAtlanta Law & Politics ExaminerMichael A. DeVine

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Having lived in the Queen City for nearly three years, it is clear that the infrastructure here lags behind that of Atlanta, Columbia and Greenville-Spartanburg. I am told by those in the know that rural, eastern and Raleigh-Durham interests control the legislature for their benefit at Charlotte’s expense. I know what job killers are acts of the federal government of the clean water and endangered species varieties.

President-Elect Barack Obama’s New Deal size public works proposal could offer some hope in improving Charlotte’s roads up to the standards of the 21st century, but only if the jobs program defangs the trial lawyers for the environmental lobby and supersedes the state legislature’s discriminatory allocation of funds.

Republicans missed an opportunity to divide Obama from congressional Democrats to limit the eventual parameters of the Big Three automaker bailout when they didn’t immediately agree with the "pre-packaged" bankruptcy trial balloon the President-Elect launched a few weeks ago.
 
I fear they may miss a golden opportunity to use the public works bill to weaken draconian anti-economic growth environmental laws due to a poorly timed new found ideological opposition to government spending. Yes, conservatives should return to their small government roots, but not in opposition to proper government spending on infrastructure.

Government is responsible for building and maintaining roads and bridges. Yes, we know that Keynesian style public works spending didn't end the Great Depression. And yes, Obama's rhetoric hints at perpetuating that myth while suggesting that this 21st Century version of FDR's WPA would end the current recession.

But great works were constructed under FDR (see NC TVA  project pictured) and Republicans would make a grave mistake if they lead with an argument opposing infrastructure spending. No, the GOP must support accelerated spending of this kind during this economic crisis and insist that the crisis requires that environmental trial lawyers must not be allowed to delay the hiring of workers. The Tennessee Valley Authority would never have been allowed to bring electricity to Appalachia had today's legal environment obtained in the 1930s.

Obama is arguing 24/7 that he wants to put Americans to work. Let's force him to choose between employing trial lawyers and blue collar workers, shall we? Let's challenge Obama to not let the Endangered Species, Clean Water and any other acts prevent putting Americans back to work.

Fellow conservatives, can we talk? We know that the main stimulus we need is a supply side tax and regulation reduction that unleashes Liberty-empowered Americans to bail themselves out, but we also need to maintain the Nation’s infrastructure and given the economic facts, there is every reason to accelerate the process.

So why not use this as an opportunity to highlight the extremism of leftists that have owned the Democratic Party for thirty years?

Will recession ravaged Americans have the patience to abide orange cones on the highways guarding only equipment and unfilled holes while lawyers litigate the effect on polar bears this winter.

I think not.

Let’s get a good public works bill for Charlotte that even Raleigh and snail darters can’t stop.

Mike DeVine’s Minority Report and Charlotte Observer columns

"One man with courage makes a majority." -  Andrew Jackson