Florida Gov. Rick Scott on Wednesday became the third newly elected Republican governor to reject the Obama administration’s $53 billion plan to build a nationwide high-speed rail network.
Governor Scott’s decision not to build a high-speed rail line between Orlando and Tampa does not yet constitute a state-level revolt against high-speed rail. Similar decisions to opt out of high-speed rail by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and Ohio Gov. John Kasich do not critically damage the federal plan, experts say.
But they offer a glimpse of how the Obama rail plan might falter once it arrives at the US House of Representatives, which was recast by same tea party wave that swept the three governors into office. Moreover, the governors’ actions could point to a refocusing the federal plan, which seeks to make high-speed rail accessible to 80 percent of Americans within 25 years.
Full Story: Derailed? Third GOP governor rejects Obama high-speed rail plan. – CSMonitor.com.