How It Started Vs. How It’s Going: President Biden and Democrats Achieved What President Trump and Republicans Never Could

“It’s infrastructure week!” – President Trump (Sad)

Four years ago, President Trump unveiled the first of many long-awaited and underwhelming infrastructure plans – a campaign promise that famously never came to fruition. Unlike President Biden, Trump failed to deliver on his infrastructure promises after at least a dozen “infrastructure weeks.” His many pledges to focus on fixing the nation’s infrastructure have become “a running joke in Washington, emblematic of the administration’s bumbling approach to governing.”

On the flipside, President Biden delivered in just nine months what Trump never could in four years – a historic investment in our nation’s infrastructure. In North Carolina, President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is already making an impact by providing $16 million to improve the Appalachian Development Highway System – one of the first of many of the bill’s projects to prepare the Tar Heel State for the 21st century. 

“Four years later, it’s a not-so-happy-anniversary for Trump and Republicans who failed to get what President Biden and Democrats accomplished for our nation’s infrastructure in just nine months – repairing roads and bridges, expanding high-speed internet and creating jobs in North Carolina. If it’s a day that ends in -y, you can count on President Biden delivering on what Trump never could,” said NCDP Spokesperson Ellie Dougherty. 

In North Carolina, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will provide: 

• $7.2 billion for highways

• $91.4 million in Fiscal Year 2022 and $456.8 million over five years to repair and rebuild the 1,460 bridges

• Over $900 million over five years to improve public transportation options

• $109 million over five years to expand EV charging networks

• A minimum of $100 million to expand high-speed internet

President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Will Accelerate Governor Cooper’s Clean Transportation Goals

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will invest $109 million in NC over the next 5 years to expand EV charging stations across our state, helping to accelerate Governor Cooper’s commitment to develop at least 80,000 ZEVs by 2025

Since President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed Congress in November, the Biden-Harris administration has been hard at work to ensure that the bill puts our country on a path towards a greener and cleaner future through investing in electric vehicles (EVs). 

This week, President Biden announced a new electric vehicle charging plant in Tennessee, with subsequent announcements anticipated to follow. In North Carolina, Governor Cooper recently announced Executive Order No. 246, which among other provisions, “directs the NC Clean Transportation Plan (NCCTP) to increase Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) use” with the goal of developing at least 80,000 ZEVs by 2025. 

Together, President Biden and Governor Cooper are leading North Carolina towards a clean transportation future. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will invest $109 million in North Carolina over the next five years to expand EV charging stations across our state, helping to accelerate the Governor’s commitment to increasing ZEVs in North Carolina. 

Since passing the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the Biden-Harris administration has taken significant steps towards making electric vehicles the future for transportation in our country: 

• The Department of Energy and the Department of Transportation are establishing a Joint Office of Energy and Transportation to implement a nationwide electric vehicle charging network.

• President Biden is working with representation across multiple avenues, to ensure that diverse backgrounds and priorities have a voice in building out the EV network – the White House will focus on partnerships with local and state governments, domestic manufacturing, equity and environmental justice, civil rights, partnering with tribal communities, and maximizing environmental benefits.

• The White House will work with local and state governments to issue state-specific guidance on how best to maximize EV funding from the infrastructure law.

• The DOT and DOE are working with American manufacturers, automakers, and labor leaders to ensure EV infrastructure is made in America to drive domestic competitiveness and create good-paying jobs.

The DOT is working with the US Federal Highway Administration to establish a process that regularly updates highway infrastructure to ensure cars have easy access to charging stations, along all routes.

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Will Deliver for Black North Carolina Communities

The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is a game-changer for Black North Carolinians. This once-in-a-generation investment in good paying jobs, infrastructure, and high-speed internet access will support communities from Murphy to Manteo. North Carolina Democratic Party Chair Bobbie Richardson released the following statement: 

“In his first year in office, President Biden saw the fastest economic growth since 1984 and the most jobs created in one year ever. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will continue to build on this economic progress and deliver for Black North Carolinians by addressing critical problems like replacing lead pipes, rebuilding roads and bridges, and updating infrastructure to protect communities from extreme weather events. Together, the Biden-Harris administration, Governor Cooper and North Carolina Democrats are creating new economic opportunities and making long overdue investments in North Carolina’s Black communities.”

How the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is delivering for Black North Carolinians: 

• Ensuring every North Carolina household has access to reliable high-speed internet, helping lower costs and improving internet access for Black Americans who are 9% less likely than their white peers to have high-speed internet.

• Eliminating lead pipes and providing the largest investment in clean drinking water in American history. Black communities in North Carolina are at risk for lacking access to clean drinking water.

• Investing in public transit, reducing commute times, and addressing the backlog of repairs.

• The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will invest roughly $65 billion — the single largest investment in clean energy transmission in American history — to upgrade our power infrastructure and reduce pollution. Black people are almost 5 times more likely to die from asthma-related causes than white counterparts.

• Remediating brownfields and Superfund sites. 26% of Black Americans live within 3 miles of Superfund sites that can lead to elevated lead levels in our children’s blood. By providing $21 billion to cleanup efforts, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law will help protect our children while providing good-paying union jobs to our communities.

  https://www.ncdp.org/media/biden-democrats-achieved-what-trump-republicans-could-never/

  https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2022/01/14/fact-sheet-biden-harris-administration-hits-the-ground-running-60-days-into-infrastructure-implementation/

  https://www.transportation.gov/infrastructure