The Highway Bill

Floor Speech

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Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, ``there is no such thing as a Republican road or a Democrat road.'' That is what Chairman Inhofe said a few days ago, and he is absolutely right. No wonder Republicans and Democrats continue to rally around a bipartisan, multiyear highway measure that is fiscally responsible and will not raise taxes.

The bill before us would streamline regulations, advance research and innovation in transportation, modernize infrastructure and transportation systems, and inject new accountability measures so Americans can get a better handle on how their tax money is actually being spent.

This multiyear bill also reverses the trend of short-term temporary patches, giving State and local Governments the certainty and the stability they need to better plan road and bridge projects. On top of that, the bill would also provide State and local Governments with more flexible options for stretching those transportation dollars.

So this is a good bill for our country. Substantial numbers of Republicans and Democrats continue to support it. But time is running out to get this bill through Congress. We are up against a deadline at the end of the week. Jobs are on the line. Important infrastructure projects are too. So we have to get the job done--and we are.

We have had to navigate some especially difficult political terrain to get this far already. It hasn't always been easy, but we are now nearing completion of the Senate's work on this bill.

If the bipartisan coalition supporting this fiscally responsible, multiyear bill continues to cooperate and work hard, I know we can get there.

I want to thank every colleague who has worked so hard already on this bill, particularly Chairman Inhofe and Senator Boxer, who have really done magnificent work to get us to this point. Let's hope we can all get it across the finish line.

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