>>> A HUGE STEP FORWARD FOR THE
BIDEN AGENDA TONIGHT AT THE
BIPARTISAN BILL MOVED FORWARD.
17 REPUBLICANS JOINED DEPUTIES
TO CLEAR THE FILIBUSTER.
BEGINNING DAB ON THE DEAL.
CHUCK SCHUMER REAFRMD HIS
COMMITMENT TO PASSING THE
BIPARTISAN BILL.
>> MY GOAL REMAINS TO PASS THE
BIPARTISAN INFRASTRUCTURE BILL
AND A BUDGET RESOLUTION DURING
THIS WORK PERIOD.
BOTH.
IT MIGHT TAKE SOME LONG NIGHTS.
IT MIGHT EAT INTO OUR WEEKENDS,
BUT WE ARE GOING TO GET THE JOB
DONE AND WE ARE ON TRACK.
>> JOINING ME NOW SECRETARY OF
TRANSPORTATION PETE BUTTIGIEG.
SECRETARY, YOU KNOW, ITS NOT
THE WISEST THING TO REASON YOUR
WAY THROUGH POLITICS BASED ON
HOW PEOPLE YOU DONT LIE THINK
ABOUT THINGS.
I WILL SAY DONALD TRUMP HATES
THIS DEAL, WHICH MAKES ME
INCLINED TOWARDS FAVORING IT.
THE U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE
LOVES, WHICH MAKES ME SKEPTICAL
OF IT.
HOW SHOULD I THINK WITH ITABOUT
HOW DO YOU THINK ABOUT IT?
>> ITS REMARKABLE YOU HAVE THE
U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND
AFL-CIO SAYING THE SAME THING.
AN EXCITING THING IS YOU HAVE
ALL THESE STRANGE BED FOAL LOWSF
TOGETHER.
BUSINESS AND LABOR, DEMOCRATS
AND REPUBLICANS.
MAYBE NOT THE FORMER PRESIDENT.
BUT SO MANY PEOPLE ACROSS THE
SPECTRUM AND ACROSS THE COUNTRY
KNOW WE NEED TO MAKE THIS HAPPY.
WE HAVE BEEN TALKING ABOUT
INFRASTRUCTURE DEALS IN
WASHINGTON FOR YEARS AND YEARS.
NOW WE HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO
MAKE IT HAPPEN.
NOT JUST A RUN OF MILL
INFRASTRUCTURE BILL BUT
SOMETHING THAT I THINK WILL BE A
GENERAL ROIGS
GENERATIONAL INVESTMENT AND
HISTORIC OPPORTUNITY ON JOB
CREATION, ON CLIMATE AND A LOT
OF OTHER THINGS AT STAKES IN HOW
WE SET UP THE TRANSPORTATION FOR
THE FUTURE.
>> I WANT TO TALK ABOUT SOME OF
THE CLIMATE ASPECTS.
FIRST THIS QUESTION.
HERE IS SOME OF THE -- SO PEOPLE
HAVE A SENSE OF THE TOP LINES
HERE.
WE WILL DIG INTO THIS AND THESE
TOP LINES ARE SORT OF THESE
NUMBERS.
YOU HAVE ROADS AND BRIDGES,
POWER INFRASTRUCTURE AND CLEAN
ENERGY, RAIL AND AMTRAK,
MODERNIZING TRANSPORT, YOU HAVE
GOT ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGERS.
WHEN WE ARE TALKING ABOUT ROADS
AND BRIDGES, PORTS, THINGS LIKE
THAT, LIKE, ARE THESE GOING TO
BE BUILT WITH AN EYE TOWARDS
WHAT THE CLIMATE OF THE NEXT 25
YEARS LOOKS LIKE?
BECAUSE IT REALLY SEEMS LIKE
THAT IS CRUCIAL NOT JUST THAT WE
MODERNIZE AND GET AWAY FROM
FOSSIL FUELS, BUT THE THINGS WE
ARE BUILDING ARE CLIMATE
RESILIENT FOR A WORLD GETTING
MUCH HOTTER, MUCH WETTER.
>> THATS RIGHT.
YES, WE ARE WORKING TO MAKE SURE
THAT CLIMATE CHANGE IS STOPPED
FROM GETTING WORSE THAN IT IS,
BUT ITS ALREADY UPON US.
IN PORTLAND, DURING THESE
SHOCKING TRIPLE-DIGIT
TEMPERATURES THEY SAW THE HEAT
WAVE, THEY HAD TO SHUT THEIR
TRANSIT SYSTEM DOWN BECAUSE THE
CABLES WERE IN DANGER OF
LITERALLY MELTING.
IN NEW YORK AT THE HUDSON RIVER
TUNNELS, PART OF WHY THEY ARE IN
TOUGH SHAPE IS SEAWATER
PENETRATION DURING SUPERSTORM
SANDY.
YOU SEE 50 PLUS BILLION
IDENTIFIED FOR DEALING WITH
THINGS LIKE DROUGHTS AND FIRES
AND FLOODS AND WE ARE GOING TO
EXPECT CERTAINLY AS A DEPARTMENT
TO THE EXTENT THAT WE ARE
SHAPING THE DOLLARS THAT
CONGRESS IS, HOPEFULLY, ABOUT TO
PASS, WE ARE GOING TO BE
EXPECTING THAT THE COMMUNITIES
AND GRANT APPLICANTS DEMONSTRATE
THAT THEY GET THE WAY SOMETHING
SHOULD BE DESIGNED FOR THE
FUTURE ISNT GOING TO BE THE
SAME AS THE PAST.
IF YOU KEEP GETTING A ROAD BACK
THAT GETS WASHED OUT YEAR AFTER
YEAR, MAYBE IT NEEDS TO BE BUILT
A DIFFERENT WAY.
>> I WANT TO PAY SOMETHING FOR
YOU THAT YOU HAD TO SAY IN
CLIMATE CHANGE IN 2019.
TAKE A LISTEN TO YOUR OWN WORDS.
>> WE HAVE LIVED THIS IN MY
INDUSTRIAL MID-WESTERN HOMETOWN,
MY GENERATION HAS LIVED THIS AS
LONG AS WE HAVE BEEN ALIVE.
ITS ONLY ACCELERATED.
SCIENCE TELLS US WE HAVE IS12
YEARS BEFORE WE REACH THE
HORIZON OF CATASTROPHE WHEN IT
COMES TO OUR CLIMATE.
>> NOW, THERE ARE SOME CLIMATE
PROVISIONS IN THIS LEGISLATION.
BUT IF YOU LOOK AT THE WHITE
HOUSES INITIAL PROPOSAL, RIGHT,
A LOT OF THE THINGS THAT THE
WHITE HOUSE CARES ABOUT, CLEAN
ENERGY STANDARD ONE OF THEM,
VERY, VERY IMPORTANT, WE ARE
VERY FOCUSED ON THIS SHOW, ARE
NOT IN THIS BILL.
WHAT SHOULD WE MAKE OF THAT?
ARE THOSE PRIORITIES BEING
ABANDONED?
>> NOT AT ALL, NO.
THIS IS ONLY ONE PART OF THE
ADMINISTRATIONS POLICY.
OBVIOUSLY, WE HAVE THE BUDGET
RESOLUTION, RECONCILIATION
FRAMEWORK AND MORE WORK LIKE THE
CLEAN ENERGY STANDARD AND OTHER
PIECES OF TAX POLICY THAT
MATTER.
YOU SHOW THAT CLIP.
THATS PROBABLY A YEAR OR TWO
OLD.
ITS TEN YEARS NOW, IF WE ARE
LUCKY.
SOME OF THE WORST EFFECTS OF
CLIMATE CHANGE ARE ALREADY
HAPPENING NOW.
I GUESS WHAT I WOULD EMPHASIZE
IN THIS BILL, EVEN THOUGH ITS
NOT MAYBE CONSIDERED THE CLIMATE
BILL, IS THAT EVERY
TRANSPORTATION DECISION, WHETHER
WE CALL IT THAT OR NOT,
TRANSPORTATION IS THE BIGGEST
EMITTER OF GREENHOUSE GASES IN
THE U.S. ECONOMY.
WHEN WE ARE CREATING THE BIGGEST
INVESTMENT IN THE HISTORY OF
PUBLIC TRANSIT, THATS A CLIMATE
DECISION.
WHEN WE ARE TALKING ABOUT
INVESTMENTS ON PORTS AND MAKING
IT EASIER TO MOVE GOODS OVER
WATER, WHICH IS MORE CLIMATE
FRIENDLY, THATS A CLIMATE
DECISION.
ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING
INFRASTRUCTURE, SCHOOL BUS,
HELPING TRANSIT AGENCIES ACQUIRE
ZERO EMISSION BUSES, THEY ARE
PART OF THE ANSWER WHEN IT COMES
TO MAKING SURE THAT WE MEET THE
AGGRESSIVE GOALS THAT THE
PRESIDENT SET OUT WHEN IT COMES
TO OUR CLIMATE.
AND THIS IS ONE OF THE REASONS
WHY I THINK ITS IMPORTANT TO
UNDERSTAND THAT THIS BILL IS NOT
LIKE THE 2009 STIMULUS PACKAGE,
WHICH DID A LOT OF IMPORTANT AND
GOOD WORK IN TRANSPORTATION.
THAT WAS ABOUT DEALING WITH THE
ECONOMIC CRISIS OF THAT MOMENT.
THIS IS ABOUT PREPARING THIS
BILL FOR THE FUTURE.