[Congressional Record Volume 152, Number 53 (Friday, May 5, 2006)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E747-E748]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                        AMTRAK 35TH ANNIVERSARY

                                 ______
                                 

                           HON. CORRINE BROWN

                               of florida

                    in the house of representatives

                         Thursday, May 4, 2006

  Ms. CORRINE BROWN of Florida. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to recognize 
Amtrak on its 35th Anniversary, and commemorate its 35 years of public 
service to this Nation through it's commitment to passenger rail.
  I travel all over the country and the people I talk to love Amtrak. 
It is a great way to commute to work, it takes cars off our already 
congested highways, and in many areas of the country is the only mode 
of transportation available. In fact, ridership has increased in 8 of 
the last 9 years reaching a record level of over 25 million passengers 
last year. It is also important to note that Amtrak's long distance

[[Page E748]]

trains are the only inner city passenger trains in half the states in 
America.
  Amtrak was also a First Responder during hurricane Katrina, and 
helped evacuate thousands of Gulf region residents while President Bush 
and his Administration were nowhere to be found. Now they are becoming 
a key part in each State's future evacuation plans.
  Now what I can't understand is why the Bush Administration is trying 
to destroy passenger rail in this country. Every industrialized country 
in the world is investing heavily in rail infrastructure because they 
realize that this is the future of transportation. But sadly, as there 
systems get bigger and better, our system gets less and less money.
  President Bush has a lot of wacky ideas for dealing with the high gas 
prices he created, but I can assure him that as prices climb to $4 
dollars per gallon, you are going to see Americans lining up to use a 
passenger rail system that has been neglected by this very 
Administration. But what more do you expect when you put J.R. Ewing in 
the White House.
  Once again we see the Bush Administration's paying for its failed 
policies by cutting funds to vital public services and jeopardizing 
more American jobs. This Administration sees nothing wrong with taking 
money from the hard working Amtrak employees who work day and night to 
provide top quality service to their passengers. These folks are trying 
to make a living for their families, and they don't deserve this shabby 
treatment from the President.
  With the passage of the latest emergency funding for the war, 
President Bush will have spent over $439 billion on the war in Iraq, 
but could only find $900 million for Amtrak's 25 million passengers. 
Just one week's investment in Iraq would significantly improve 
passenger rail for the entire country for an entire year. This is 
another perfect example of just how out of touch this Administration is 
because I can assure the President that there is a whole lot more 
support for Amtrak in this country than there is for the war in Iraq.
  Unfortunately, there is a lot of misinformation spread about Amtrak, 
and it is important for people to know the real facts about Amtrak. 
Ridership numbers are at record levels, outstanding debt has been 
reduced by $300 million, major infrastructure projects have been 
completed. All with a workforce that has been reduced by over 4,000 
employees.
  We still have a lot of work ahead of us when it comes to Amtrak. But 
we're starting $900 million closer to our goal, and I know with the 
help of the American public, we can fully fund Amtrak at $1.6 billion 
and keep Amtrak running long into the future.

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