President Obama has proposed cutting $10 million in federal funds from West Virginia's Corridor H highway project, triggering a fight with U.S. Sen. Robert C. Byrd, D-W.Va., Public Broadcasting reports.
"While President Obama can submit his budget request to Congress, it is the Congress that has the power of the purse," Byrd said in a statement. "And it is this Senator’s intention to ensure that the money is put back into the purse for Corridor H."
As Public Broadcasting explains, "Corridor H would connect Elkins to the Virginia border near Wardensville, and is touted as a way to bring Washington, D.C. tourists into West Virginia. But Virginia has refused to complete the last few miles of the Corridor H. And it’s been assailed as a 'Road to Nowhere' by the group Citizens Against Government Waste."
With audio. The Charleston Gazette also has a report. It notes that Byrd "secured a $9.5 million earmark for Corridor H construction earlier this year for planned work between Davis in Tucker County and Forman in Grant County."
08 May 2009
Obama, Byrd at Odds over Corridor H
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3 comments:
When even the nation's biggest ever spender, Obama, is against your pork spending, you are in big trouble.
True that. Let's hope they never complete the project between Davis and Parsons...That area must remain Wild n Wonderful!
Wake up people. This area of beautiful West Virginia is desperate for an influx of jobs and money. Completion of Corridor H would "open" this area to more tourists, hense, money & jobs. Hikers, mountain bikers, skiers, outdoor enthisiasts of all kinds from the east will find it easier to get here and spend their money. Poverty abounds and unemployment is high in the mountains. The severe winters limits the industrial development of this area. Tourism is the answer. Good roads bring tourists!
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