Press Releases

Virginia newspapers reject latest GOP transpo excuses

Posted by Greg on Wednesday, June 25

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                
June 25, 2008                                               

 

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT...

Jim Bacon praises Kaine approach while Virginia newspapers dump latest GOP excuses

 

Richmond- In today's Alexandria Times, noted columnist Jim Bacon applauds Gov. Tim Kaine's innovative approach to solving the state's transportation problems, saying "Gov. Kaine has done more to inject 'smart growth' thinking into the administration of state government than any governor in Virginia history."

Meanwhile, newspapers across Virginia have soundly rejected Republicans' latest scheme for fixing the Commonwealth's transportation needs: auditing the Virginia Department of Transportation. Again.

Floated once more by Bob McDonnell and House Republicans, the proposal is being called an "empty poke," an "excuse for sloth" and a "smokescreen for do-nothing members of the GOP," as editorial boards from across the ideological spectrum agree with Gov. Tim Kaine that Virginia's road costs far exceed any possible savings from an agency that has been audited and reviewed eight times since 2001.

"House Democrats strongly believe that government should be run as efficiently as possible," said House Democratic Leader Ward Armstrong. "That said, this turnip has been bled nearly dry. Virginians realize that spending $13 million on yet another audit of VDOT alone will not fix the transportation crisis. House Republicans need to face this problem head on instead of offering the same tired excuses."

Excerpts follow:

"Renewed Republican calls for transportation audits seem excuses for sloth. Audits unaccompanied by serious steps, such as those outlined in our Sunday editorial, resemble dodges. We are not impressed. The voters should not be impressed, either." ["The Audit Dodge," Richmond Times-Dispatch, 6/25/08]

"There's the VDOT excuse, with a variation this year. The usual desperate need to 'reform' the state road agency has been replaced with the desperate need to 'audit' the agency. If a third-party audit is the price it takes to get some of these folks to sign on for progress on other fronts, fine, but not if it's just a delaying tactic, or a setup for the next election." ["Get it done," Daily Press, 6/25/08]

"Del. Phil Hamilton recently lamented on these pages that the Virginia Department of Transportation is dragging its feet in using tolls and public-private partnerships to underwrite major road projects. Why hasn't the state requested permission from federal authorities to toll interstates? he grumbled. A quick telephone call to VDOT might have cleared up this mystery for Hamilton. Virginia has asked and received the OK to impose tolls on nine projects, of which seven are in Hampton Roads." ["Taking an empty poke at VDOT," Virginian-Pilot, 6/25/08]

"Republicans in Richmond have revived one of their old standbys to justify their inaction on the state's transportation problems. They say they will consider funding options, but only after an independent audit of the Virginia Department of Transportation. The first eight audits apparently were not enough... Virginia needs about $1 billion more a year. Does the GOP really think it will find that much waste at VDOT?" ["Don't blame VDOT," Roanoke Times, 6/25/08]

 

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