GOP hopes to skirt Minn. bridge issue

Original Link: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0708/12220.html

By ERIKA LOVLEY

It’s a year today since the Minneapolis bridge collapse that killed 13 people, but don’t expect Gov. Tim Pawlenty to showcase the reconstruction.

Indeed, with the Republican National Convention in St. Paul just a month away and Pawlenty reported to be high on John McCain’s running mate list, Republicans want to drive attention away from the infrastructure disaster that spotlighted the nation’s crumbling bridges and from the criticism the governor faced for what some critics said was a slow response.

The governor’s staff reports there are no plans to hold any events near the site of the bridge collapse, about 10 miles from the convention hall. And GOP convention planners have organized hundreds of buses to ease the congestion expected when some 45,000 conventioneers, guests and media commute to the hall.

“The anniversary of the bridge collapse is this Friday, and the convention isn’t for a month after that. The two things aren’t really related,” said Pawlenty spokesman Brian McClung.

Republicans say they would rather not dampen the convention by revisiting an old tragedy.

But critics suspect the GOP wants to prevent embarrassing a potential vice presidential nominee and avoid drawing attention to Congress’ slow response to the infrastructure crisis.

"A tragedy of that kind raises national visibility to those kinds of decisions,” said former Sen. Jim Talent (R-Mo.), an honorary chairman of the Alliance for Improving America’s Infrastructure, referring the bridge collapse and Pawlenty’s prospects to make the national ticket.

“They are based on a bunch of different factors and the weight nominees give to them,” Talent said. “Decisions can also change based on immediate political needs.”

Pawlenty was criticized by House Transportation Committee Chairman James L. Oberstar (D-Minn.) and other members of the state’s congressional delegation last year for being slow to apply for disaster funding relief after the tragedy and for vetoing state legislation that would have invested millions in the state’s infrastructure.

The state of Minnesota was recently highlighted in House legislation for spending only 51 percent of its federal bridge funding on bridges over the past five years. Just last weekend, a 1,200-pound slab of concrete fell from the bottom of a St. Paul bridge, damaging two vehicles. No one was injured.

“I would certainly hope that while members are in Minnesota, they would visit the new bridge and reflect on the country’s need for infrastructure funding,” said Ray McCabe, a bridge expert with engineering firm HNTB who has testified before Congress.

The governor, though, has not avoided all discussions about the nation’s infrastructure. He recently hosted New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell on his radio show to talk broadly about the country’s needs. But the bridge was not a topic of discussion.

“Everyone is very careful about not making the I-35 bridge an issue,” said the Pennsylvania governor’s Washington representative, Peter A. Peyser. “Gov. Rendell and Mayor Bloomberg wanted to highlight the [infrastructure] issue but didn’t do it in a way to involve the bridge. Both were sensitive that people died there.”

Along with California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rendell and Bloomberg chair the Building America's Future coalition, which plans to invite both presidential campaigns to join in a forum on the broader infrastructure issue this fall.

Increased national attention could mean increased scrutiny of Congress, as well. Last month, the House successfully passed a bill sponsored by Oberstar that allocates $1 billion to repair the nation’s bridges, a sliver of the estimated $140 billion needed.

The Minnesota Department of Transportation and other states bemoaned the legislation, however, because it would prevent state officials from transferring the funds to non-bridge projects.

“It takes away flexibility from the states to spend the money where it’s most needed,” said the Brad Larsen, director of federal relations for the Minnesota Transportation Department.

But with Congress headed out on its August recess, similar legislation has yet to be introduced in the Senate — and the Bush administration is already promising a presidential veto.