Update: April 2024 - As President Biden's bipartisan infrastructure bill continues to get rolled out and to provide economic benefits throughout the country, we also are seeing more and more hypocrisy on the GOP far right. Those are the folks who voted against the infrastructure bill back in 2021, but you wouldn't know it today based on what they're saying.

Believe it or not, those hypocrites now are trying to take credit for the infrastructure projects in their districts being funded by the Biden bill! Among those who just recently have been trying to fool their constituents are Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-GA) - no surprise there! - and Maria Salazar (R-FL).

When Ms. Salazar was called out on her hypocrisy during a recent news interview, she tried to fend off the question by saying she votes on a lot of bills and doesn't remember how she voted on this one. She said she would have to check with her staff on how she voted. Doesn't remember how she voted on one of the largest, most-publicized pieces of legislation this century? Weak!

Here is our original article (with updates) describing the details of the infrastructure bill and how Donald Trump ignored the nation's crumbling infrastructure throughout his time in office:

Update: November 2021 - Five years ago Donald Trump promised the American people a trillion dollar spending program to improve the nation's infrastructure. Once in office, though, he never even prepared an infrastructure proposal, much less was able to get one passed by Congress.

Less than ten months into the Biden Presidency, though, the country now has the trillion dollar infrastructure program we've needed for decades. This week Joe Biden signed into law a bi-partisan $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill that will provide funding for roads, bridges, ports, rail and air transportation, water systems, and internet broadband expansion. This will be the largest investment in public infrastructure since the construction of the interstate highway system under President Eisenhower in the 1950's.

(Signing ceremony image from nyt.com)
Eighteen Republican Senators and thirteen Republican House members cast supporting votes for the legislation. Only six Democrats voted against the bill. Following the bill's passage, Senators Mitch McConnell (R-Ky) and Rob Portman (R-Oh) were two of the GOP legislators who spoke of the economic benefits that will accrue to their states and called the legislation good for America.

Shortly after the signing ceremony, Mr. Biden announced that former Mayor Mitch Landrieu of New Orleans will oversee the administration of the program. Mr. Landrieu has received high marks for the work he did in re-building New Orleans after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina. With much of the spending being transportation-related, Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg will be another key player in the rollout of the spending package.

Historically *, infrastructure always has received bi-partisan support but, in recent years, far too many Congressional Republicans have opposed any infrastructure bill, even though states, municipalities, engineers, and economists from across the political spectrum have been advocating this needed spending for decades. Passage of the bill is a testament to Mr. Biden's ability to work across the aisle and to get things done, two of the key promises he made during the 2020 Presidential campaign.

(* Public support for infrastructure spending goes back to the early 1800's when various legislative bodies throughout the country began to authorize spending for the building of roads and canals. Later in the century, one of the supporters of those types of "internal improvement" projects was a young Illinois legislator named Abraham Lincoln. As President, Mr. Lincoln also supported the construction of a trans-continental railroad.)

April, 2021 - The running joke in Washington during the four years of the Trump administration was that next week was going to be "infrastructure week", the time when Mr. Trump finally would announce the details of the massive infrastructure spending plan he had promised during the 2016 campaign. Unfortunately for the country's crumbling roads and bridges, and possibly for Mr. Trump's own political fortunes, that plan never materialized.

Whether it was because he knew the Republicans in Congress had opposed such a plan for years (see our article "Will GOP Ever Fix Our Infrastructure?") and/or because it would require too much work on the part of Mr. Trump to develop the details and then to work for its passage (as was likely also the case for his often-promised, but never seen "beautiful" Obamacare replacement plan), infrastructure is another example of Mr. Trump not following through on a campaign promise.

Not so for Joe Biden, though. Fresh off delivering on his promise for a Covid relief bill, the President has submitted a $2 trillion infrastructure spending plan, twice the size that Mr. Trump had promised. And, unlike Mr. Trump's tax cuts that favored the rich and powerful, Mr. Biden's plan pays for his proposals so we won't continue running up the federal debt.

(Biden discussing the jobs effect of infrastructure)
Should the Republicans continue to balk at supporting infrastructure spending, they may be doing so at their own peril. Not only is the work necessary, but it is an excellent means of putting people to work and stimulating the economy. Most Americans recognize this and favor Mr. Biden's plan, particularly when they know that raising taxes on large corporations is the primary means of paying for the new spending.

What follows is a high-level overview of the infrastructure plan that the Biden team will be presenting to Congress. The President has indicated his willingness to negotiate on the details and many in Congress already have their own ideas of what should be included in the package, so the final version of the bill is sure to be somewhat different than this initial proposal. But after over a decade of hearing Republicans in Congress say no to infrastructure, we're looking forward to finally making some progress in this area.

The Biden Infrastructure Proposal:

Transportation: $621 billion
The largest segment of the Biden plan includes funds to improve roads, bridges, public transit, rail, ports, waterways, and airports. It also will help build out electric vehicle infrastructure.
Water Systems: $111 billion
These dollars will be used to eliminate all lead pipes and service lines, and to upgrade the country's drinking water, wastewater and storm water systems, particularly in older urban areas and in rural parts of the country.

(Secretary Buttigieg will spearhead much of the plan)
Internet: $100 billion
This part of the proposal would guarantee that all Americans have access to affordable high-speed internet service by expanding broadband infrastructure throughout the country and by increasing competition among internet carriers.
Power Grid: $100 billion
These funds will improve the reliability and security of our nation's electric grid and heating infrastructure (after this past winter's storms, our friends in Texas certainly can appreciate the need for this) and will encourage the move to cleaner energy sources.
Manufacturing: $400 billion
Funds in this category will be targeted for small business loans, economic development in rural communities, clean energy, semi-conductors (US businesses are facing a serious chip shortage today and into the future), medical manufacturing to improve the nation's response to future pandemics, and, in conjunction with Mr. Biden's already-signed executive order, will move the federal government toward a policy of "buy American first".
Housing: $213 billion
This money will be used to renovate and retro-fit lower- and middle-class homes, focusing on energy efficiency, with heavy use of block grants and tax credits.
Schools: $100 billion
The Biden team will use these dollars to build new public schools and upgrade existing buildings (including a large amount designated for technology labs); improve community college infrastructure; and upgrade/expand child care facilities, which includes a tax credit for businesses to build child care facilities at places of work.
Research & Development (R&D): $180 billion
These funds would upgrade US research infrastructure to make sure the US (and not China) is the world leader in R&D. Critical technologies and climate science will be a strong focus. (See our article "Fracking Viable Thanks to...the Feds?", which shows how federal R&D funding in the 1970's developed the fracking technologies employed today.)
Veterans Affairs (VA) Hospitals: $18 billion to modernize VA hospitals.

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