Oberstar's Road Bill Faces Survival Test: Key Senators Back Administration Position
With the White House standing in his path and a pair of well-placed senators lining up with the administration, the guessing game in Washington is how long House Transportation Committee Chairman James Oberstar can keep his six-year highway reauthorization bill alive in Congress.
Oberstar (D-Minn.) unveiled his proposal late last month, but the Obama administration stole his thunder, announcing that it wants the reauthorization process shelved for 18 months.
"Oberstar is not going to win this game," said Joshua Schank, director of transportation research for the Bipartisan Policy Center, a Washington think tank.
"He's up against the Senate and the administration, and there's only so much he can do," said Schank, who co-wrote a book, "All Roads Lead to Congress," about the previous reauthorization struggle. That conflict in 2005 produced the $286.5 billion SAFETEA-LU measure -- the Safe, Accountable, Flexible and Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users -- after more than two years of congressional maneuvering.