McCain blames Minnesota bridge collapse on wasted money

[MinneapolisMatt]

McCain blames Minnesota bridge collapse on wasted money

http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iE2JCSH5p9r2GBkQWS9TWAMzmuvQD90CJ4GG0

ALLENTOWN, Pa. (AP) — Republican John McCain said Wednesday that the bridge collapse in Minnesota that killed 13 people last year would not have happened if Congress had not wasted so much money on pork-barrel spending.

Federal investigators cite undersize steel plates as the "critical factor" in the collapse of the bridge. Heavy loads of construction materials on the bridge also contributed to the disaster that injured 145 people on Aug. 1, according to preliminary findings by the National Transportation Safety Board.

Yet McCain, while campaigning in Pennsylvania, told reporters: "The bridge in Minneapolis didn't collapse because there wasn't enough money. The bridge in Minneapolis collapsed because so much money was spent on wasteful, unnecessary pork-barrel projects."

-snip-

Democrats criticized McCain's comments. "It is reprehensible that John McCain would use a national tragedy to make a political point that isn't even grounded in facts," said Damien LaVera, spokesman for the Democratic National Committee.

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:grr:

[qb]

1. This is Pawlenty's friend?

Timmy has been running away from all fiscal explanations and pinning 100% of the blame on whoever designed the bridge over 40 years ago.

[loveable liberal]

2. look at our roads and bridges, schools and police

Bush's plan to destroy effective government: Mission Accomplished. Before Timmy the Tool plows used to get ahead of the snow, there used to be two seasons, winter and road repair, there used to be enough school funding and the police used to have to fight for funding.

We are heading, as a nation, to third-worldness. The designers have decided that have's and have-nots is the best way to run a country. Royalty and peasants.

Just make sure you have enough water stored away in your basement folks and buckle your seatbelts, the time of America being prosperous for all is coming to an end.

[Deja Q]

4. Meanwhile, Tim goes to India to help big box stores set up shop.

Building up the world is not bad, no argument there.

But building it up by tearing down everyone else just doesn't sound quite right.

[Deja Q]

3. Not allocating time, money, and authorized people to do the job is the problem.

The bridge, as said on the nightly news, was made in 1967 and whose specs said they would last ___ years under ____ load. Between 1967 and now, never mind 1967 and 1979, the amount of traffic (both quantity and gross weight) has skyrocketed.

Whether or not those who designed it in 1967 were thinking of 40 years in the future or not is one thing. Being able to look back and re-think for the future almost seems easier.

I recall governor Pawlenty looking genuinely sad over the incident, but what McCain is saying is utterly ludicrous.

Does pork barrel spending include legislators giving themselves big bonuses and pay raises every year?

[Hong Kong Cavalier]

5. What a soulless bastard. Dancing on the graves of 13 people

But then again, this is what I expect from all Republicans these days.

Thirteen people are dead because Mr Timmy "No new taxes" Pawlenty gutted the goddamn budget for road repairs/inspections and appointed his Lt. Governor as Transportation Commissioner.

I say fuck you, John McCain. Fuck you, you soulless bastard.

:mad:

And a special fuck you to MDE, who we all know are lurking on this board. :hi:

[Echotrail]

6. 43 cents on every dollar collected in taxes goes to the military

so yeah, money for bridge repair was "wasted" on the reprehensible McBush policy of killing Muslims, a few thousand Americans and destroying Iraqi and American societies.

We got what we paid for. Disaster.

[Minnesota Raindog]

7. This is the same McCain who proposes to gut highway funds with his idiotic gas-tax holiday?

McSame proposes to suspend the federal highway tax this summer, thus short-changing the Federal Highway Trust Fund by about $9 billion. And he's pointing fingers about not spending money on bridge repair? Why does the media keep giving this goddamn fraud a pass?:puke:

[FiveGoodMen]

8. "Why does the media keep giving this goddamn fraud a pass?"

Because at this point the media are a bunch of goddamn frauds.

We need to clean out more than just the White House!

[JfortheDonks]

9. McCain & Co.

McCain & company need to start thinking realistically, if that's even possible. We need to start literally "fixing" our own country here instead of worrying about the Middle East - a place we can never completely change unless we just annihilate them entirely right off the map. While monorail train systems are needed, first things first! We need to fix and finish our bridges, etc... before we start any new projects. It pisses me off to think how much money we are spending each and every day on this so-called war in Iraq when we were all brain washed into thinking Iraq is to blame for 9-11 when we should be in Afghanistan full force instead. Ohhh, don't get me started -ERRRRRR!!!!!!

[Deja Q]

10. Well, who's been running the budget these recent years? Governor Pawlenty.

Before that it was Ventura.

How far back shall we go?

Why wouldn't Pawlenty do preventive maintenance rather than slashing or shifting budgets? An audit of the infrastructure? Or would he then be grilled for wasting money too?

As I recall reading on DU some months ago, wasn't the MNDoT budget slashed a few months before the bridge collapse, complete with a picture of everybody smiling?

Having said all that, none of the Presidential candidates has much of relevance to say regarding this topic.