Bond At Odds With President Over Transportation

Missouri’s man on the Congressional committee trying to craft a new federal highway bill admits he’s getting some static from fellow Republican President Bush on the proposal. Normally a staunch backer of the President, Senator Kit Bond says he realizes he is crossways with the White House when it comes to how big the Federal Highway Bill should be. Bond says the $284-Billion Highway Bill coming out of the U.S. House is too small to get the job done properly. He’d rather see it be closer to $318-Billion. President Bush says he won’t sign anything over $284-Billion. Currently, federal highway funding has been done on a temporary basis. State transportation officials have said in the past that makes it a bit difficult to make long-range plans.