Election Update
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- Written by Daniel Johnson
- Category: Blog
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Two things have occurred since Ross wrote Wednesday’s blog entry:
1) Senator Conrad Burns (R-MT) did lose his re-election bid.
2) The Democrats did take control of the United States Senate.
Although leadership elections have not yet been held, it is likely that the following Members will become chairs of committees relevant to Amtrak:
House Appropriations: David Obey (D-WI)
Appropriations Transportation Subcommittee: John Olver (D-MA)
House Transportation and Infrastructure: Jim Oberstar (D-MN)
Senate Appropriations: Robert Byrd (D-WV)
Appropriations Transportation Subcommittee: Patty Murray (D-WA)
Senate Commerce: Daniel Inouye (D-HI)
To repeat what Ross said, while the overall climate for passenger rail will be more positive, funding will be harder than ever to come by.
-Dave Johnson