UPDATE, MAY 25, 2011: Apparently, the Republican thugs in the Iowa Statehouse have decreed passenger rail to be dead. The Governor's spokesman, Tim Albrecht--one of the most dimwitted public servants I've ever seen--commented that passenger rail "would require ongoing subsidies". Of course, this half-wit doesn't acknowledge that we subsidize air and highway carriers. But that's OK, because they funnel money into the pockets of the Chosen Ones, the Koch Brothers and the Tea Party terrorists who somehow have managed to grab control of most Republican politicians and hold them by their genitals. Apparently, Albrecht, the governor's spokes-dummy, thinks that it's acceptable to lie to the public. That's assuming that Albrecht actually thinks, which is really a long shot.

So, the Republican thugs, bowing and kissing the butts of their masters, have decreed that Iowans will have no way of travel that doesn't involve higher air fares, or increasing gas prices. And this idiocy has earned the current leadership the well-deserved criticism of the Natural Resources Defense Council. Of course, Albrecht, making himself look even more stupid, responded to that by boasting of Iowa's leadership in renewable energy. Albrecht, of course, is neither honest or intelligent enough to admit that this leadership was the legacy of Branstad's Democratic predecessors, Tom Vilsack and Chet Culver.

Now, the original article:

In a recent Des Moines Register article, Iowa House Speaker Kraig Paulsen stated that funding for the proposed Iowa City to Chicago Amtrak service would not be in next year's state budget. Paulsen needs to be honest with himself and the public. His decision to prevent funding for the proposed Amtrak service from Iowa City to Chicago has nothing to do with the money. It has everything to do with the special interests who have purchased Paulsen and the Iowa Republican Party. The tea partiers, led by the Koch brothers and their astroturf groups, are working overtime to ensure that Americans have no option other than buying increasingly expensive gasoline for their cars. Paulsen is proving beyond doubt that he's willing to put his allegiance to the Kochs ahead of the best interests of Iowa.

Paulsen claims that the Iowa City service is unnecessary because Amtrak already serves Mount Pleasant, just a short 50-mile walk to the south. Kraig, you moron, it's FIFTY MILES, with no way other than walking or hitchhiking to get to Iowa City. Using that logic, we don't need to support the Eastern Iowa Airport in Cedar Rapids--Paulsen's home turf--because we have airports not far away in Des Moines and the Quad Cities. If he had half a brain, Paulsen would realize that the airlines would love to get out of the short-distance markets--for example, Cedar Rapids to Chicago, or Des Moines to Chicago. It isn't worth it to them, and they don't make any money on the short-hauls. But that's one area where rail service does well--the so-called "corridor" routes. The Federal government subsidizes air carriers--that's the only way that Ottumwa gets air service, to name one--and we subsidize highway carriers. The GOP excuse is that these subsidies provide "economic benefits". But to them, rail service is held to a different standard. The hypocrisy is sickening.

Oh, and never mind that the city of Iowa City is so strongly in favor of the idea that their council is willing to contribute to the necessary operating support. Never mind that this would provide a tremendous benefit to the University of Iowa. With Paulsen and the Republicans, ideology trumps common sense.

If Paulsen is truly concerned about money, then the House should strip funding for Iowa's commercial airports as well. After all, in his words, "If it's worth while, private business will do it". Quit being a hypocrite, Kraig. If you subsidize air and highway carriers--and you do--there's no legitimate reason to strip the Amtrak funding.

November 2012 can't come too soon. This year's Iowa legislative session, thanks mostly to the Republicans, has been a joke. They've had time to rush through a dove hunting bill, and they've had plenty of time to work on a gay marriage amendment that never had a chance of passage. But here it is, mid-May, a week after the session was supposed to end and we have no budget. Oh, and let's not forget: The Iowa GOP ran on a platform of job creation. Remember that? Terry Branstad's 200,000 new jobs? Where are they? Where's the bill that will help create them? Hasn't happened. But they did blow off the new jobs that the Amtrak construction would have created. At least the GOP is consistent--consistently stupid. God help us if the GOP would actually do something to benefit the state and not their donors.