He?s an ?asphalt industry lobbyist? Ever since President-elect Donald Trump promised in his victory speech to ?rebuild our infrastructure, which will become, by the way, second to none,? advocates remained hopeful that what he really meant was lots of public transit, too. His choice to lead his transportation transition might reveal his true intentions: A road lobbyist.
The list of people being considered by the incoming President for cabinet positions and transition teams contains few surprises (and even fewer women and people of color). But what?s shocking for someone who campaigned against lobbyists?or maybe not that shocking, since this is Trump we?re talking about?is how many lobbyists are on the list.
Including transportation transition leader Martin Whitmer, who has lobbied for the National Asphalt Paving Association, the Association of American Railroads, and the American Road and Transportation Builders Association. Whitmer, who was also appointed deputy chief of staff of the USDOT in 2003, has been heralded as an expert on ?surface transportation policy??which translates to being good at building lots and lots of highways. In fact, according to his website, Whitmer?s firm worked with trade organizations on the passage of the $305 billion FAST Act of 2015, which has been widely criticized for pumping too much money into roads and not enough into transit. Here?s another disconcerting achievement. According to its website, Whitmer?s firm ?worked with the ...