Trump went all-out to win farmer support. Now they’re all in on Biden’s infrastructure plan – By Katie Lobosco (CNN) / Sept 26 2021
(CNN)Former President Donald Trump sent billions in federal aid in a bid to win over America’s farmers — but now they’re all for President Joe Biden’s $1.2 trillion infrastructure package, in hopes it will mean fixing roads and bridges critical to the delivery of food to the rest of the nation.
The bill could be a big bipartisan win. It was drafted by lawmakers from both parties and passed the Senate with 19 Republican votes in August, but its fate remains uncertain with Democrats divided over tying it to a larger $3.5 trillion spending package.
“We’ll take as much money the federal government can send our way and I would say almost every state is in a similar condition,” said Bill Panos, the director of the North Dakota Department of Transportation, who also serves as the president of the Western Association of State Highway Transportation Officials.
Panos has a 10-year plan for North Dakota that is projected to cost $2 billion just to maintain existing infrastructure — about the amount in federal funding the state expects to receive for road and highway investments if the bill passes. North Dakota’s senators Kevin Cramer and John Hoeven, both Republicans, voted for the bill.
CONTINUE > https://www.cnn.com/2021/09/26/politics/infrastructure-bill-republican-support-farmers/index.html
