Republican U.S. Rep. Rich Nugent on Thursday backed off his call to use the $2.4 billion in federal high-speed rail funds rejected by Gov. Rick Scott to pay down the national debt. Instead, he shocked tea party activists by urging the money be sent to Tallahassee for other Florida transportation projects.
Tea party activists across the state were quick to criticize Nugents comments, saying the Tea Party Caucus member had it right the first time.
Nugent said last week that he backed the governors decision and hoped the monies would be used to pay down the national debt.
Like all states, Florida is desperately short on money because the federal government takes such an enormous share of Americans paychecks that there is little left for the states basic responsibilities," Nugent said earlier. "The result is that Florida and others are becoming more and more dependent on Uncle Sams apparent generosity. That needs to change.
... Governor Rick Scotts decision to decline $2.4 billion in federal money for high-speed rail is clearly a necessary and responsible choice, added Nugent. I just hope that the money is used to pay down part of our $14 trillion national debt.
Apparently he decided there was another priority for those funds. A week after making that statement, he was singing a different tune.
Nugent sent a letter to U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood, asking him to reserve the high-speed rail funds for other projects in the state, sending those dollars to Tallahassee -- with the idea that using them to pay down the national debt should be a secondary option.
I have informed Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood that the $2.4 billion in high-speed rail funds should be provided to the state of Florida, for the state to utilize for infrastructure at its discretion, rather than for high-speed rail, which Governor Scott and other officials have said will not be the best use of our money, Nugent noted on Thursday.
I have also told Mr. LaHood, if Florida is not given the flexibility to use its own funds as it sees fit, the money should be used to pay down the national debt that has, in part, been borrowed in Florida taxpayers' names over the years, added Nugent.
I believe that it is in the taxpayers' interest to build something that will yield the greatest return on their investment and one that best manages their risk over the long term, he continued.
With the national debt on an unsustainable course, it does not make sense to commit $2.4 billion to high-speed rail when Governor Scott and other Florida officials have indicated that other Florida infrastructure projects are more urgently needed.The day of reckoning about our federal budget is coming. And when it does, this rail line will be set against the other competing obligations of the federal government.This, and so many other initiatives like it, will fall short. The states -- already burdened with a federal government that takes too big a share of America's tax revenue -- will be left with the tab.
Governor Scott, I believe, has expressed to you the infrastructure needs that the state is currently facing - ports and highways among them, wrote Nugent in the letter to LaHood. If the administration sees fit to return Florida taxpayers' dollars to them, it is my wish - and my constituents' wish - that those dollars be returned to the state in such a way that Florida can determine for itself how best to use them.
If the state is not given the flexibility to use its own funds as it sees fit, I respectfully ask that the money be used to pay down the national debt that has, in part, been borrowed in Florida taxpayers' names over the years, continued Nugent. Frankly sir, I reject the premise that this money belongs to the federal government. It does not. Further, I submit to you that it is the height of federal arrogance to presume to tell a sitting governor that he is wrong about what investments in infrastructure are best for his state.
Sunshine State News reached out to the congressmans office in Washington Thursday but it was closed for office training, according to a message.
Tea party activists across the state reacted mightily to Nugents comments
Phil Russo, a founding member of the Orlando Tea Party, said, "It doesn't surprise me. Nugent is a freshman, and he did something that politicians should never do -- he spoke his mind.
"I wouldn't be surprised if [House Transportation Chairman John] Mica didn't grab him by the ear and tell him, 'We're keeping this money, whether you like it or not.'"
Speaking of Nugent, Robin Stublen, chairman of the Charlotte County Tea Party, noted, "We have people in the House Tea Party Caucus who aren't necessarily in the tea party.
"The man needs to realize that just because we have the money doesn't mean it needs to be spent," Stublen said.
Rather than continuing to roll the old provincial pork barrels, Stublen suggested, "The better way to do this is to prioritize the greatest needs throughout the country."
Better yet, Stublen said, the $2.4 billion "needs to be taken off the books altogether."
Tom Gaitens, state director for the Washington, D.C.-based FreedomWorks and co-founder of the Tampa Tea Party, said, "Nugent clearly has fallen prey to the Beltway flu."
Charging the first-term congressman with "political cover and cowardice," Gaitens said Nugent also misunderstands the basic facts of transportation funding.
"Of the $2.4 billion, $1.6 billion is specific stimulus money that may not even be there anymore as the House moves to defund high-speed rail projects.
"The other $800 million is only available if a local community matches it," Gaitens said. "It's not free money for the taking."
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859. Reach Kenric Ward at kward@sunshinestatenews.com or at (772) 801-5341.
