Government

Infrastructure Investment in the Time of Few Compromises

Important projects will get off the ground with or without Congress. It'd just be a whole lot easier with them.
U.S. President Barack Obama shakes hands with Speaker of the House John Boehner at the end of President Obama's 2015 State of the Union address. Reuters/Jonathan Ernst

In last night's State of the Union address, President Obama once again made that most eat-your-vegetables of admonitions—America's urgent need to invest in infrastructure. Still, the same questions remain: which projects are most deserving, and above all, how should we pay for them?

“Twenty-first century businesses need 21st century infrastructure—modern ports, and stronger bridges, faster trains and the fastest internet,” Obama said. “Democrats and Republicans used to agree on this. So let's set our sights higher than a single oil pipeline. Let's pass a bipartisan infrastructure plan that could create more than thirty times as many jobs per year, and make this country stronger for decades to come.”