Kaplan Daily’s official Obama scold, Glenn Kessler, has dropped yet another “four Pinocchios” on the President over bridges in my state of Kentucky.
“I sent them a jobs bill that would have put hundreds of thousands of construction workers back to work repairing our roads, our bridges, schools, transit systems, along with saving the jobs of cops and teachers and firefighters, creating a new tax cut for businesses. They said no. I went to the Speaker’s hometown, stood under a bridge that was crumbling. Everybody acknowledges it needs to be rebuilt. Maybe he doesn’t drive anymore. Maybe he doesn’t notice how messed up it was. They still said no. There are bridges between Kentucky and Ohio where some of the key Republican leadership come from, where folks are having to do detours an extra hour, hour-and-a-half drive every day on their commute because these bridges don’t work. They still said no.”
For this, Glenn throws the book at the President.
As we said before, we understand the need for symbolism. But that does not give a president license to stretch the facts.
Calling out the Republicans at the Brent Spence bridge was bad enough, given the bipartisan support for its reconstruction. But pointing to the Sherman Milton Bridge, which already has been repaired without funding from the president’s jobs bill, is ridiculous.
Perhaps the president was using outdated talking points, but that’s little excuse. Given that the president earned Three Pinocchios before, we have little choice but to up the ante this time.
Well, first of all the crack in the Sherman Minton in Louisville had been there since the beginning, and the repairs to fix it were far less extensive than originally thought. It was still a pain in the ass for four months out that way just as the president said. Meanwhile here in Cincy, construction season is currently adding about 30 minutes to my commute every afternoon. The problem is of course that the President is right about the Brent Spence. I live in northern Kentucky and I drive the Brent Spence every day to and from work in Cincy, it’s in dire need of replacement because it’s congested as hell and carries two interstates worth of traffic on just four lanes. And neither Kentucky Republicans nor Ohio Republicans want to pay for it.
The $2.4 billion Brent Spence Bridge replacement could receive final environmental approval from the Federal Highway Administration by the end of July, but what happens after that is anyone’s guess.
The project schedule calls for detailed design to begin in September, but neither Kentucky nor Ohio has enough funds to complete the phase – and it’s unclear whether they’ll get it this year.
Ohio needs $52.2 million and Kentucky needs $68 million to complete detailed design of the new bridge and the related overhaul of a 7.8-mile stretch of Interstate 75.
Normally that money would come from the federal government. And right now, that’s being held up by Orange Julius and his motley crew of miscreants. Meanwhile, every month the bridge project is delayed costs the Cincinnati area $8 million. So yes, the Sherman Minton is fixed, but the Brent Spence replacement is in limbo right now and may remain so for a very long time. Construction may not start until 2015 as Kessler complains about, but Kessler fails to note that the design phase does start this year, and at least some money (as detailed above) will be needed by the end of the year, and that money is being blocked by Republicans. And personally, as a Kentucky taxpayer, I want this damn thing replaced along with the awful 3-lane 71/75 approach to the bridge through Kentucky. The sooner, the better.
Construction could begin in early 2015 – but only if funding is secured.
Backers of the project increasingly believe that Congress will not allocate any construction funding until Ohio, Kentucky and the Greater Cincinnati region come up with a plan to pay for the local match of at least 20 percent that is required.
And Kentucky lawmakers may attach strings of their own: some lawmakers want to see a plan for how to pay for construction before any money is allocated after Dec. 31, 2013.
And that’s a big if. The Kentucky legislature is in special session hashing out the road bill this week, and Ohio is supposed to tackle the issue at some point. But it seems to me Kessler needs to get some of his own facts straight before dropping Pinocchios on folks.
Napoleon
I hope you wrote Kessler with this.
Forum Transmitted Disease
Both sides do it.
What they do I’m no longer clear on, but everyone tells me that both sides do it.
Plus, Al Gore sighed and rolled his eyes once.
gaz
Thanks, I read the link yesterday. I’m glad you covered the local aspect of the politics of this, because local politics are confusing to outsiders.
I live near seattle, and used to live in seattle for years. Partially due to geography, but partially just due to the pitfalls and costs of urban expansion Seattle transportation projects tend to be pricey, but necessary. There’s no room to build out, so there’s digging, and also right-of-way problems, local business impacts etc.
Generally Eastern Washington is far redder than western washington politically, and one thing you can count on is that THEY DO NOT WANT TO PAY FOR SEATTLE ROADS, although they are happy to clog them up whenever they want to visit one of our superfluous stadiums on game day. Or screw up commutes for Seafair, etc.
This sounds a little like that. Anyway, I’m glad you gave some details, as I was wary when I read this before, and felt like I was missing something. I’m not saying Obama is always 100% forthcoming, but I’ve not known him to bald-faced lie about an issue as the author of the above piece seems to be implying.
SatanicPanic
This whole fact checking thing is just an excuse for annoying, pedantic columnists to avoid doing real work.
Ben Franklin
Speaking of bridges………
http://cannonfire.blogspot.com/
burnspbesq
“But it seems to me Kessler needs to get some of his own facts straight before dropping Pinocchios on folks.”
That’ll happen at about the same time as InsideCarolina.com promises to ban any poster who uses the words “Coach” and “Ratface” in the same sentence.
KSH
Don’t worry, Free Market Jesus will appear and allow cars to drive on water!
Waynski
Can someone remind me how many Pinocchios Bush got for the war in Iraq? So glad they’re on the job pointing out that a bridge that needed construction the last time the President was there had been fixed in the interim and that makes Obama the most mendacious liar in the history of the Republic. Douchebags.
Mudge
I don’t remember seeing many Pinocchios being leveled on Mitt, serial liar, Romney. See Steve Benen every Friday for suitable material, Mr. Kessler.
gaz
@Waynski:
how about
448633184over 100000?rlrr
@Mudge:
IOKIYAR, always.
General Stuck
You can’t sling a dead cat without hitting a ‘I can do it better than Obama” concern troll. I will give myself a Pinocchio, maybe two, before one of our resident concern trolls does it for me. It’s going to be a hard painful slog through this campaign season.
Culture of Truth
Perhaps the president was using outdated talking points, but that’s little excuse. Given that the president earned Three Pinocchios before, we have little choice but to up the ante this time.
This sounds better if you read it aloud in the voice of Queen Victoria.
bk
@burnspbesq: I think he looks more like a ferret than a rat, actually.
Punchy
Who the fuck uses “Pinocchios”? Is Kessler an 89 year old el-ed school teacher? And he has to quantify the number of them, as if a lie or truth can be quantified? Dumbass.
Belafon (formerly anonevent)
I’m pretty sure the president is sweating 33% more Pinocchios.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
@Culture of Truth:
I was trying to decide between Miss Beadle and Judge Smails.
“I’ve sentenced boys younger than you to the electric chair. Didn’t want to do it. Felt I… owed it to them.”
Jennifer
We’ll see your four Pinnochios, Mr. Kessler, and raise you five wooden noses crammed up your ass – sideways.
Frankensteinbeck
I live in Louisville. Yes, the bridge is repaired. That it cracked and all and that it took so long to get fixed because of funding issues is still a giant sore point with the locals. Kessler can whine all he likes, Obama’s speech there is what the locals want to hear.
Unfortunately, what they want to SEE is a white Republican president giving that speech.
Waynski
@gaz: I like the way you count.
gene108
I think bridges hurt our respect for Mother-Nature.
We really don’t appreciate how much of a geographical barrier rivers are anymore. There are thousands of little bridges that run over small creeks and streams all over the U.S. and we take it for granted that these creeks and streams are not an impediment to travel.
No longer do we appreciate looking for best place to ford a river at or the fact the ford in the river was necessary necessary to travel.
Let the bridges go and let Americans start respecting Mother-Nature again.
Warmongerer
@gaz:
And the best part of course is that Seattle would be able to better afford its own transportation projects if it wasn’t paying to build and maintain hundreds of miles of freeways for the handful of conservatives in Eastern Washington.
cdmarine
Zandar! Where the fuck are you? I’m in Erlanger. It’s red as hell around here. I feel like the lone liberal in Northern Kentucky sometimes.
Oh, and I HATE driving over the Brent Spence. It makes me nervous every damn time. It has Minneapolis written all over it. I’ll actually go out of my way somtimes to take 471 into Cincinnati instead.
Catsy
@Warmongerer:
Oh gods, this, this, this–every time I hear someone from Eastern WA or Bellingham whining about how they shouldn’t have to pay taxes for infrastructure in Seattle or Bellevue, I just want to hammer the stupid out of them with a largeish chunk of the Viaduct.
Tell you what, sparky: we’ll give everyone in your area a waiver on paying taxes for the infrastructure in our area. And in return, you can goddamn well pick up the tab for your own. Good luck with that.
Fucking common good, how does it work?
Scott
The problem with Kessler is he picks nits. Is the larger point, that Republicans have been blocking the president’s agenda for job creation, accurate, or not? Of course it is! But Kessler wants to crow about his prior nitpicking by highlighting it again.
To me, it indicates a consistent pattern: Republicans can, and will, say the most outrageous mistruths and receive a slap on the wrist. And most of their lies are ignored.
But let a Democrat, especially the president, get one little thing wrong, even accidentally, and the Fact-Checkin’ machine explodes!
The two parties are held to different standards. Democrats must be impeccable in all ways, lest they be labelled hypocrites. Republicans are expected to say one thing while doing another. There’s no news there.
The Snarxist Formerly Known as Kryptik
And of course the comments are about how Obama is such a massive goddamn super thuggy fuckerliar. And when people who actually seem to bring up actual observed concerns about the bridge pop in, they point at the article and scream “NUH UH, OBAMA LIES ALL DAY ERRY DAY YOU THUGS!”
Nemesis
Orange
JuliusFooliusFITY
Live in the Cinci area and that bridge is old.
Legalize
I drive over the Brent Spence every day too – but in the other direction. It’s ALWAYS a deathtrap going north. I always avoid it. A few months ago, a fella broke down and was knocked off the bridge by a passing car.
geg6
Perhaps Mr. Kessler would like to come to Pennsylvania which has the dubious distinction of having more substandard bridges than any other state in the nation. 26.5% of our bridges are structurally deficient. One of the major bridges over the Ohio River in my small county has a sufficiency rating of 2. To put that into perspective, a sufficiency rating of less than 80 means that bridge should be undergoing rehabilitation or refurbishment. A rating of less than 50 means it should be completely replaced. Over 40,000 vehicles a day cross that bridge with the 2 rating. Another major bridge here crossing the Ohio is on a major interstate. Probably 100,000 cars cross it every day. It has a rating of 31.
Ab_Normal
@Catsy: As an eastern Washington resident, I should really say something in our defense… but, nah, I’ll hold ’em down while you whack ’em, okay? It’s FUN being surrounded by conservative shitheads, it really is.
Leah
thanks for the facts, Zandar; most enlightening. This morning, wingnuts were having a ball denouncing the “mendacity” of Obama and his administration, and being furious that it took the MSM so long to notice. See especially Powerline.
Next time something like this happens, it might make sense for commentators here might go over to the Wa Po or TNYT to bring a little reality to the comments over there.
Jado
“But it seems to me Kessler needs to get some of his own facts straight before dropping Pinocchios on folks.”
Um, why? Last he checked, the pay was still going into his account. What does one have to do with the other?
Someone here is confused about the rules of the game…