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: Althouse

As long as we're spending money, I love this $8 billion for high-speed rail lines.

Especially the one that connects Madison, Wisconsin to Milwaukee, and Milwaukee to Chicago and Minneapolis. Thanks for the $810 million for Wisconsin.

Much as I hate the proposals to add light rail commuter trains to Madison, I would love some great train lines connecting our midwestern cities. I don't think people will (or can) give up their cars and use rail lines to travel between home and downtown, but I do think people will use rail instead of cars or planes to travel distances in the 50 to 300 mile range. I hate dealing with the airport, and I'm afraid of flying, so I always drive to go to Chicago or Milwaukee. I'd love to use a great train ? and I'd make those trips into the city a lot more often.

Here's the White House press release.

This historic $8 billion investment is expected to create or save tens of thousands of jobs over time in areas like track-laying, manufacturing, planning and engineering, and rail maintenance and operations.  Over 30 rail manufacturers, both domestic and foreign, have agreed to establish or expand their base of operations in the United States if they are hired to build America?s next generation high-speed rail lines ? a commitment the Administration secured to help ensure new jobs are created here at home.

Domestic and foreign? But "new jobs are created here at home." What proportion of the jobs are created here at home?

Full post as published by Althouse on January 29, 2010 (boomark / email).