Ben Fried

Stimulus debate continues today in the Senate, where the stale ideas keep on coming. In addition to the $50 billion highway slush fund floated by Senators Boxer and Inhofe (no vote on that one yet), Missouri's Kit Bond plans to offer two amendments that would rob from transit, rail, and green transportation to pay for highways.

This word of warning from cartoonist Mike Luckovich to Republicans in Congress feels all the more timely on the heels of today's action in the Senate. Click through for the punchline.

We just got word that the Murray/Feinstein amendment, which would have increased funding for both highways and transit in the Senate stimulus package, received support from 58 Senators, falling short of the 60 votes necessary to be considered. Does that clear the way for Chuck Schumer's transit amendment? Not exactly. The vote calls into question whether Senate Republicans will allow any amendment to pass that increases the overall size of the bill.

Update: Hold those phone calls, folks. Schumer has co-sponsored the Murray/Feinstein amendment, making it highly unlikely that he will offer his own, superior amendment. There are more amendments in the wings -- supported by Senate Republicans and some surprising Democrats -- that would give highway builders even greater leeway to build dirty, traffic-generating boondoggles. We'll keep you posted on those developments throughout the day. For now, you can get the message out with this action alert from Transportation for America, telling your Senator that the stimulus package should reduce oil dependence, invest in transit, and spur a green recovery.

We know plenty of states want to use stimulus funds to expand highway capacity, but how many are looking to jolt their economies with a much-needed freeway teardown? So far as we can tell, the answer is none. Perhaps they should reconsider and take a page from this week's StreetsWiki entry on highway removal:

Last night Jerrold Nadler's stimulus bill amendment, which would add $3 billion for transit, cleared the House Rules Committee. The full House may vote on the amendment by noon today, so the sooner you call your representative the better.

Last night's news about the denial of Rep. DeFazio's amendment to fund transit operations left us wondering whether parliamentary issues were really the deciding factor. In general, it appears, the Democratic leadership is coming down hard against any add-ons to the recovery package. "There's a desire to keep the bill at the size it is currently," said one House staffer involved in the negotiations who wished to remain anonymous. "Pelosi's office and the Appropriations Committee are resistant to amendments that increase the size of the bill."

Looks like Ray LaHood will sail toward an easy confirmation in the Senate. Members of the Transportation Committee were congratulating him before he opened his mouth at this afternoon's nomination hearing, which just adjourned. Here are some bullet points:

At 2:00 p.m. the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation will vet Obama's choice for Transportation Secretary, Ray LaHood. Will they grill the former Illinois rep on his predilection for pork and ties to Caterpillar? Tune in to the live webcast to find out.

For everyone hoping that an $825 billion stimulus package might advance a visionary national agenda for sustainable transportation, yesterday's release of a draft economic recovery bill didn't deliver the goods. Nor did it include some pretty easy lifts, like the $1.7 billion for transit operations that the House approved in an earlier bill last summer.