Border wall, bullet train California vs. Trump escalates Daily Mail Online
Disputes over President Donald Trumps border wall and Californias bullet train are intensifying the feud between the White House and the nations most populous state.
The Trump administration on Tuesday said it plans to cancel or claw back dollar 3.5billion in federal dollars allocated to Californias high speed rail project, a move Governor Gavin Newsom called political retribution for the states lawsuit against Trumps declaration of a national emergency.
The project to build a high speed rail between San Francisco and Los Angeles has faced repeated cost overruns and delays since California voters approved it in 2008.
Newsom declared in his first State of the State address last week that he planned to scale back the project and focus on building 171 miles of track from Merced to Bakersfield in central California a route some have questioned would be in high demand.
President Donald Trumps feud with California Governor Gavin Newsom is heating up, after the Trump administration demanded the state pay back billions in funding for a failed bullet train
A full scale mock up of a high speed train is seen in Sacramento in 2017. Newsom announced last week that he was scaling back the project to run from Merced to Bakersfield
The Trump administration argued Tuesday that the state hasnt provided required matching dollars and cant complete certain construction work by a 2022 deadline, and said that it plans to cancel dollar 929 million awarded to the project and wants the state to return an additional dollar 2.5 billion that it has already spent.
Now Newsom argues that Trump is retaliating over his states lawsuit.
California led a 16 state coalition in filing the suit Monday, challenging Trumps power to declare an emergency to earn more money to build a wall along the U.S. Mexico border.
Its no coincidence that the Administrations threat comes 24 hours after California led 16 states in challenging the Presidents farcical national emergency, Newsom said in a statement. This is clear political retribution by President Trump, and we wont sit idly by.
Its the latest spat between Trump and California, which has styled itself as the Democratic led resistance to the administration. Newsom, less than two months into his tenure, has appeared more eager to hit back at Trump than former California Gov. Jerry Brown. The lawsuit is Californias 46th against the Trump administration.
Using a broad interpretation of his executive powers, Trump declared an emergency last week to obtain wall funding beyond the dollar 1.4 billion Congress approved for border security. The move allows the president to bypass Congress to use money from the Pentagon and other budgets.
Trumps use of the emergency declaration has drawn bipartisan criticism and faces a number of legal challenges.
Still the president has told reporters he expects to prevail.
I think in the end were going to be very successful with the lawsuit, Trump told reporters, calling it an open and closed case.
Trump had earlier singled out California for its lead role in the suit, seeking to link the states high speed rail project to his plan for the wall.
On Twitter, Trump claimed the failed Fast Train project was beset by world record setting cost overruns and had become hundreds of times more expensive than the desperately needed Wall!
The estimated cost for a San Francisco to Los Angeles train has more than doubled to dollar 77 billion. Thats about 13 times the dollar 5.7 billion Trump sought unsuccessfully from Congress to build the wall.
Hours later, the U.S. Department of Transportation told California it planned to cancel nearly dollar 1 billion in federal money allocated to the rail project and wanted the state to return dollar 2.5 billion it had already spent.
Trumps comments about a failed project followed Newsoms comments last week that the current plan for an LA San Francisco train would cost too much and take too long. Instead, he said hed focus immediately on a line through the Central Valley while still doing environmental work on the full line. That work is a requirement for keeping the federal money.
Still, the U.S. Department of Transportation said Newsoms remarks reinforced concerns about the projects ability to deliver. The department wrote Newsoms comments mark a significant retreat from the States initial vision and commitment and frustrated the purpose for which the Federal funding was awarded.
This December 6, 2017, file photo shows one of the elevated sections of the high speed rail under construction in Fresno, California
California Republicans who have long called the project a waste of money applauded the Trump administrations move to take back the money.
It is time to move on from the broken high speed rail project and redirect our efforts to infrastructure projects that work for Californians, said U.S. House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy of Bakersfield, a city on the trains route.
But Newsom said the state intends to keep the money. Losing it would be a major blow to the chronically underfunded project.
This is Californias money, and we are going to fight for it, he said.
The agreement with the federal government allows the administration to withhold or take back the money if the state fails to make adequate progress or complete the project or one of its tasks.
If the federal government decides to take the money back, it doesnt have to wait for California to write a check. Instead it could withhold money from other transportation projects.
Tuesdays comments wont be the last; the administration has given California until March 5 to formally respond.
The comments below have not been moderated.
By posting your comment you agree to our .
Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline?
Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual.
Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline?
Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual
We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. Well ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook.
You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our .
Published by Associated Newspapers Ltd
Part of the Daily Mail, The Mail on Sunday Metro Media Group
For more infomation >> Colorado Springs Man Arrested In 45-Year-Old California Cold Case - Duration: 0:51. 
For more infomation >> Alcalde en California propone grabar las ventas de armas | Al Rojo Vivo | Telemundo - Duration: 0:47. 
For more infomation >> California, New York promise legal challenges to Trump's emergency declaration - Duration: 4:04. 
For more infomation >> Wintery Blast Headed For Southern California - Duration: 2:10. 
For more infomation >> Persecución de dos migrantes en California termina en drama | Noticias Telemundo - Duration: 0:35. 
For more infomation >> Sugary Drinks In The Crosshairs Of California Lawmakers - Duration: 1:20. 
For more infomation >> Learning Tricks From The Harlem Globetrotters | California Live | NBCLA - Duration: 4:51. 
For more infomation >> Débil frente sobre California - Duration: 2:01. 
For more infomation >> California lawmakers seek tax, other limits on sugary drinks - Duration: 0:49. 
For more infomation >> Lluvia de febrero en California Noticias 21 11 pm - Duration: 1:51. 
Không có nhận xét nào:
Đăng nhận xét