U.S. Senate candidates bash infrastructure bill

COLUMBUS — The Republicans running to succeed Sen. Rob Portman seem more eager to get an endorsement from former President Donald Trump than they are from the man they’re hoping to replace.

The leading candidates in Ohio’s Republican U.S. Senate primary on Tuesday all issued statements trashing the bipartisan $1 trillion infrastructure bill that Portman spent months negotiating and which passed the Senate earlier in the day in a 69-30 vote, including support from 19 Republicans. They instead sided with Trump, who had been openly urging Republicans to vote against the bill, warning that Democrats would use it to their advantage at election time.

“It will be very hard for me to endorse anyone foolish enough to vote in favor of this deal,” Trump previously said in a statement.

The bill will bring a onetime supplemental appropriation of $548 billion to fund everything from major highway projects, to mass transit, to Great Lakes restoration and bringing broadband internet access to areas that don’t have it. Parts of the bill will be paid for by redirecting money from previously awarded coronavirus relief funds and enhanced unemployment funds that states rejected. The Congressional Budget Office has said the bill will add $256 billion to the federal deficit over 10 years.

Portman announced earlier this year that he won’t run for reelection in 2022, kicking off a hotly contested primary to replace him. The primary election is in May. Angling for a Trump endorsement and supporting the former president’s agenda have been a dominant theme of the Republican side of the race.

Polling has shown the bill to be popular with the American public, with Quinnipiac University finding last week that 65% of respondents supported it, although 54% of Republicans said they opposed it.

In opposing the bill, many Republican U.S. Senate candidates on Tuesday cited the bill’s connection to a $3.5 trillion spending package that Democrats say they want to do next. Democratic House Speaker Nancy Pelosi has said she won’t hold a vote on the infrastructure bill until the Senate takes up the larger bill, which Democrats hope to do through a “reconciliation” procedural move that won’t require Republican votes.

Josh Mandel, the former Ohio treasurer who is a polling leader in the race, said of the bill: “Now is not the time for bipartisanship in D.C. — now is the time for fighting the woke liberal agenda. If I were in the Senate I would have fought tooth and nail to stop this bill which is a wasteful wish list of the radical left.”

Examples, his campaign said, were the bill’s overall $1 trillion price tag, spending on

Amtrak and rail that they said nearly matches the amount spent on roads and bridges, and its connection to the larger Democratic spending bill.

Jane Timken, who quit her job as the chairman of the Ohio Republican Party to run for the Senate, said she would have been a “no” vote, also citing the larger Democratic spending bill.

“In the U.S. Senate, I would support targeted infrastructure spending that addresses the real needs of roads, bridges and broadband for Ohioans that does not raise taxes or add to the bloated federal deficit, but unfortunately this bill does not do that,” Timken said.

J.D. Vance, the author and venture capitalist, has taken to social media and conservative media to bash the bill. In a video posted to his campaign’s Facebook page, he described the bill as “importing critical race theory into America’s infrastructure programs.” He took issue with the word “equity” appearing in the bill, including references to the 1998 “Transportation Equity Act for the 21st Century,” and language targeting broadband internet to underserved areas, as well as a separate portion that encourages the trucking industry to recruit more women drivers.

Vance also said Republicans were opening the door for the larger Democratic spending bill.

“This is a total disaster for our country and Republicans have been totally had,”

Vance said.

Mike Gibbons, a Cleveland businessman, said the bill doesn’t include provisions to pay for it, and paves the way for Democrats’ “woke agenda.”

“It is disappointing to see so many Republicans waste taxpayer dollars without concern,” Gibbons said. “We expect this from Democrats, but it’s clear career politicians, regardless of party, are more interested in cutting backroom deals than addressing our debt.”

Bernie Moreno, a Cleveland car dealer, wrote on Twitter on Sunday that “DC politicians are addicted to spending tax payer money,” sharing an article detailing the $256 billion deficit figure. He said in an interview that Congress should let states spend previously allocated COVID relief money on infrastructure projects.

“I’m all for infrastructure. That’s super popular. I want my roads and bridges. That’s what the federal government should do,” Moreno said. “But I think right now what Republicans are voting on and not seeing is that we have too much spending already in the system. We have the money out there already. Just redeploy that money.”

Only one Republican, Ohio Sen. Matt Dolan, of Chagrin Falls, said he would vote for the bill. But Dolan isn’t officially in the race, only at this point pursing a “listening tour” as he decides whether to run.

“I commend Senator Portman for working to construct a commonsense and long-overdue infrastructure package that will not only benefit Ohioans with more jobs, improve roads, bridges, rail and broadband, but also strengthen our economy without raising taxes or contributing to inflation,” Dolan said.

“Those on the extremes who oppose this muchneeded bill, either by linking it to an unrelated and unnecessary liberal wish list spending bill or by demanding ideological purity, are placing petty primary politics before the needs of our state. They are not listening to Ohioans and that’s wrong.”

Portman, meanwhile, has said he hopes Democrats won’t tie the infrastructure bill with the larger spending bill they want to do. He said the infrastructure bill will bring Ohio $9.8 billion for federal-aid highway assistance, including $483 million of formula funds for bridge replacements, as well as funding for mass transit and broadband internet. He’s said Trump should take some credit for the bill by proposing a $1.5 trillion infrastructure plan during his campaign, and getting the political conversation started.

Portman issued a statement Tuesday with Republican and Democratic senators who led negotiations on the bill describing the legislation in grandiose terms, calling it a “historic victory for the American people” that will “modernize and upgrade our roads, bridges, ports, and other key infrastructure assets.”

“In doing so, this landmark piece of legislation will create jobs, increase productivity, and pave the way for decades of economic growth and prosperity — all without raising taxes on everyday Americans or increasing inflation,” the statement reads. “Importantly, this achievement is a testament to what we can achieve when we join together and do the hard work it takes to move our country forward. This historic bill is the product of months of good-faith negotiations between Republicans and Democrats unified in their desire to do right by the American people.”