If you have 56 minutes to spare and want to get a sense of life on the not-so-glamorous road, I encourage you to tune in to C-SPAN coverage of my recent trip to Vermont and New Hampshire. You don't have to be a member of the Ray LaHood fan club to appreciate this video for the insight it offers into the economic concerns of Americans.
Listen to the challenging tone of the questions. We came all this way to celebrate two projects and the jobs they create, but the audiences are not blithely content with that. These folks have concerns. Concerns about the number of jobs involved, about how long these stimulus jobs will last, about what other projects will be funded, and about how we're going to pay for infrastructure work in the next 5-year surface transportation reauthorization. These are important concerns, and this Administration is working hard to address them.
I think the video shows I like getting out of Washington and having a chance to see the flavor of things at the local level. I was also glad at the day's last stop to have the opportunity to talk up the joint HUD-DOT livable communities initiative. It's one of the many exciting programs I am privileged to be involved in as Secretary.
To be honest, C-SPAN's video doesn't even show all of that trip's activities, but it does convey a sense of a long day on the road. These days are not glamorous, but when I go into communities and hear people's concerns, it's a great honor to know that I've been working hard and to be able to say, "Yes, we're doing something about that."
I watched most of the 56 minutes. Sort of long, but interesting.
I like the idea of things like this being made available.
Murray Bodin
Posted by: Murray Bodin | April 27, 2009 at 02:27 PM
This is quite a good blog, I am from the UK and haven't seen our goverment do things like this.
Well done...
Posted by: Curtains-uk | April 29, 2009 at 06:33 PM
i look to the video, and wonder if you dont have some time left to teach the goverment from latvia how to make some work. i think they need some good advice and you look like the right person for it.
Posted by: gerrit | April 30, 2009 at 07:04 AM