Congressman King Urges President Trump, Feds To Help Fund Gateway Project
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – With President Donald Trump threatening to veto any bill that includes a new rail tunnel under the Hudson River, there's a furious push to get him back on board.
As CBS2's Andrea Grymes reported, Long Island Republican Peter King hopes the luck of the Irish might help change the president's mind when it comes to funding the Gateway Project.
"We went off to the side to discuss it. It was five minutes," the congressman told CBS2's Andrea Grymes.
King used Thursday's St. Patrick's Day luncheon at the Capitol to lobby Trump. The president has signaled he will veto a government spending bill if it includes money for the project, which would build a new rail tunnel under the Hudson River.
Local Democrats and Republicans have called it one of the most pressing infrastructure needs in the country.
"I can tell you the president listened to everything I had to say, he understood the importance of it, and that's really all I can say right now," King said.
Why would Trump, a New Yorker, suddenly do an about-face on a hometown project?
As part of the political back-and-forth, officials have said they didn't think it's a good use of federal taxpayer money, Grymes reported. But many believe the president is using Gateway as political leverage, especially because New York Democrat Sen. Chuck Schumer is such a fierce supporter of the project, among others.
On Wednesday, Connecticut Democrat Sen. Richard Blumenthal tried to get assurances from U.S. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao at a committee hearing.
"Will you commit to the Gateway Project?" Blumenthal asked.
"A campaign is being waged in the public arena to bully the department, to pressure the federal government to fund these projects," Chao replied. "I can't commit to something I don't know. They did not come in with a realistic financing plan. There's no application."
King disputes that, saying New York and New Jersey have both documented how the project would be financed. He says Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan told members he has no objection to including Gateway in the spending bill, but doesn't want the president to veto the bill because the project is included.
King says he hopes spending will include $900 million to at least get the project started.
Congress needs to vote and the president needs to sign the bill funding all government operations sometime between now and next Thursday, or the government would shut down.
