JASON J. CZARNEZKI

I earlier posted about the loss of high-speed rail funds in Ohio and Wisconsin to other states.  (At least the funds are still going to rail rather than roads.)  This post’s title quote is the title this press release from Milwaukee County Clerk Joseph Czarnezki criticizing Wisconsin’s Governor-elect for stopping high-speed rail in Wisconsin.  (It seems I agree a lot more with my father as an adult than I suspect I did as a child.)  The money quote in the press release:

“Governor-Elect Walker has kicked Wisconsin taxpayers in the caboose by sending our hard earned tax dollars to other states.”

UPDATE: The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel has a long article detailing the redistribution of the rail funds.  (At least some of the money is coming to Vermont…I vote for high speed rail from Montpelier to NYC, or any rail from Vermont to Boston.)

UPDATE 2: Train-maker to pull out of Milwaukee.

Mere moments ago, I posted about the absurd railroad politics in Wisconsin and Ohio.  Now this: “Sources say feds to pull, redistribute state’s high-speed rail money.”  The money quote:

“Congressional sources say the Obama administration is taking $1.2 billion in high-speed rail money away from Ohio and Wisconsin and awarding it to projects in other states.  People familiar with the grants say the Department of Transportation will announce Thursday that California, Illinois and New York, among other states, will get a share of the funds.  Republican governors opposed to high-speed rail were elected in Ohio and Wisconsin in November. They have promised to kill projects in their states.”

That’s right folks, the states will now have to pay back the feds, will lose high-speed rail infrastructure, and will lose the jobs created by construction, maintenance, and ridership, and might lose the manufacturing jobs for making the trains.

It seems that Ohio (see here) is experiencing the same type of railroad politics as Wisconsin (see here and here).  New York, Illinois, and Minnesota seem more than happy to take the train funds and the accompanying economic growth if WI and OH don’t want them.

Even though the state’s operating expenses will be relatively low, the Governor-elect still wants to kill the project.  See here.

I’ve been posting a lot lately about the high-speed rail saga in Wisconsin.  See here.  Well, now this:  Talgo, the train maker, might move the train-making plant to Illinois if WI Gov.-elect Walker kills the train project.