Trump to hit the road for a jobs-focused reset in tough week
Eyes modernization of infrastructure
The infrastructure push will offer some fresh ideas for the White House and lawmakers alike to discuss.
“It does not matter who you are — whether you are a farmer in the Midwest or a mother driving your kids to and from school, or work, or a college kid flying back and forth to school — you are affected by infrastructure,” Gary Cohn, Trump’s chief economic adviser, told reporters during a preview of the events.
On Monday, Trump will propose privatizing the air traffic control system, calling on lawmakers to hive it off from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
Trump will make remarks in the Rose Garden and explain how the plan will save travelers time and save fuel costs for airlines, Cohn said.
On Wednesday, Trump will travel to the banks of the Ohio River to talk about improvements to the 12,000 miles (19,300 km) of inland waterways, dams, locks and ports critical for shipping farm products, and will deliver a speech about his vision for infrastructure, Cohn said.
He will huddle with a bipartisan group of governors and mayors at the White House on Thursday to discuss their needs and plans, Cohn said. Most U.S. infrastructure is owned by state and local governments.
Trump will wrap up his push on Friday with a visit to the Department of Transportation to discuss regulatory reform for roads and rail, Cohn said.
Trump last month asked Congress for $200 billion for infrastructure over 10 years, a plan that would encourage state and local governments to lease assets to the private sector to generate funding for other projects.
Some projects in rural areas may need traditional federal grants, an administration official told reporters but most funds will be used to try to attract and lever- age outside spending.
His administration has said it wants states to expand the use of tolling on interstate highways.
The White House does not plan to release its own infrastructure bill, and officials told reporters the timing for legislation is not set.
On the air traffic control overhaul, Trump plans to share the “principles” he supports, but will leave the drafting of legislation to lawmakers, officials told reporters.
Trump has said in the past that he would consider packaging infrastructure with healthcare or tax reform legislation as an incentive to obtain support from lawmakers.
The infrastructure plan has already attracted some privatesector interest. Last month, US private equity firm Blackstone Group LP and Saudi Arabia’s main sovereign wealth fund said they planned to create a $40 billion vehicle to invest in infrastructure projects, mainly in the US.