Klain warns Democrats: Trump infrastructure plan a trap

Posted by | November 19, 2016 14:12 | Filed under: Politics

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Ron Klain has advised both President Obama and Secretary Clinton.

I’ve got a simple message for Democrats who are embracing President-elect Donald Trump’s infrastructure plan: Don’t do it. It’s a trap. Backing Trump’s plan is a mistake in policy and political judgment they will regret, as did their Democratic predecessors who voted for Ronald Reagan’s tax cuts in 1981 and George W. Bush’s cuts in 2001.

…Trump’s plan is not really an infrastructure plan. It’s a tax-cut plan for utility-industry and construction-sector investors, and a massive corporate welfare plan for contractors. The Trump plan doesn’t directly fund new roads, bridges, water systems or airports, as did Hillary Clinton’s 2016 infrastructure proposal. Instead, Trump’s plan provides tax breaks to private-sector investors who back profitable construction projects.

…desperately needed infrastructure projects that are not attractive to private investors — municipal water-system overhauls, repairs of existing roads, replacement of bridges that do not charge tolls — get no help from Trump’s plan. And contractors? Well, they get a “10 percent pretax profit margin,” according to the plan. Combined with Trump’s sweeping business tax break, this would represent a stunning $85 billion after-tax profit for contractors — underwritten by the taxpayers…

Second, as a result of the above, Trump’s plan isn’t really a jobs plan, either. Because the plan subsidizes investors, not projects; because it funds tax breaks, not bridges; because there’s no requirement that the projects be otherwise unfunded, there is simply no guarantee that the plan will produce any net new hiring…

Third, because there is no proposed funding mechanism for Trump’s tax breaks, they will add to the deficit — perhaps as much as $137 billion…

Fourth, if the Republican approach to the Recovery Act is any indication, the Trump plan will come chock-full of policy changes that undermine core Democratic principles. Buried inside the plan will be provisions to weaken prevailing wage protections on construction projects, undermining unions and ultimately eroding workers’ earnings. Environmental rules are almost certain to be gutted in the name of accelerating projects.

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Copyright 2016 Liberaland
By: Alan

Alan Colmes is the publisher of Liberaland.

7 responses to Klain warns Democrats: Trump infrastructure plan a trap

  1. Buford2k11 November 19th, 2016 at 14:27

    yep…we all knew this was going to be bad…it is really worse than I imagined…

  2. Red Mann November 19th, 2016 at 15:01

    Just take a look at the sweetheart deal the Republican Governor of Virginia pulled with the Elizabeth River Crossing. The deal done behind closed doors, high tolls that have a huge economic downside, guaranteed massive profits and a non-competition clause. The same Governor spent $40 million on a road replacement project, through a lot of wet lands, before the Corps of Engineers even looked at it. This is what we expect on a national level.

  3. Dwendt44 November 19th, 2016 at 15:40

    Why am I not surprised?

  4. amersham1046 November 19th, 2016 at 17:43

    Smoke and mirrors, seen this before with Reagan

  5. Kick Frenzy November 19th, 2016 at 21:02

    Gladly, Sanders will most likely keep a very public and loud stance against such measures.
    Who knows whether it’ll make a difference, but at least we know some Dems will fight against such policies.

  6. CgntvDssdnt November 20th, 2016 at 01:12

    Imagine if democrats in Congress did not compromise on ANYTHING for 2 years.

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