Sen. J.D. Vance (R-OH) is calling on House and Senate Republicans to represent the residents of East Palestine, Ohio, against corporate special interests in the rail industry that enjoy lucrative taxpayer-funded federal subsidies.
Last month, a Norfolk Southern train derailed in East Palestine, with a population of less than 5,000, leaving chemicals spewing into the community’s environment.
The Ohio Department of Natural Resources estimates that more than 43,000 fish and other aquatic animals were killed as a result of the toxic chemical spill, while residents have reported feeling sick, getting rashes, and developing “chemical bronchitis.”
“We are the party of working people in this country,” Vance said of Republicans, urging them to live up to their name by siding with the residents of East Palestine over the often government-subsidized rail industry:
Mohawk Valey Joint Fire District via StorfulThere’s been a big political realignment in this country over the last 30 years … we are the party of firefighters, of police officers, of the people who go to work, pay their taxes, fight our country’s wars, and keep our communities safe. We are proud of that and we should be proud of that in the Republican Party. [Emphasis added]
But now we are faced with a choice, with this legislation and how we respond to this crisis, do we do the bidding of a massive industry that is in bed with big government, or do we do the bidding of the people who elected us to the Senate and to the Congress in the first place? [Emphasis added]
I believe that we are the party of working people, but it’s time to be the party of working people. We have a choice. Are we for big business and big government or are we for the people of East Palestine? It’s a time for choosing. Let’s make the right one. [Emphasis added]
During testimony before the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, Vance blasted rail industry lobbyists who are attempting to tank his legislation — co-sponsored with Sens. Josh Hawley (R-MO), Marco Rubio (R-FL), John Fetterman (D-PA), Bob Casey (D-PA), and Sherrod Brown (D-OH) — to increase public safety requirements for trains carrying hazardous materials, among other things.
“I worry that there has been a movement in my party and in my movement in response to the legislation that I’ve proposed that would not hold Norfolk Southern or the rail industry accountable,” Vance said.
His remarks, Vance said, are directed at “a particular slice of people who seem to think that any public safety enhancements for the rail industry is somehow a violation of the free market … if you look at this industry and what’s happened in the last 30 years, that argument is a farce.”
“This is an industry that enjoys special subsidies that almost no industry enjoys,” Vance continued:
Alana Mastrangelo / Breitbart NewsThis an industry that enjoys special legal carveouts that almost no industry enjoys. This is an industry that just three months ago had the federal government come in and save them from a labor dispute, it was effectively a bailout, and now they’re claiming before the Senate and the House that our reasonable regulation, our reasonable legislation is somehow a violation of the free market? Well pot, meet the kettle, because that doesn’t make an ounce of sense. You cannot claim special government privileges, you cannot ask the government to bail you out, and then resist basic public safety.
[Emphasis added]
In particular, Sen. John Thune (R-SD) has suggested he is reluctant to support provisions of Vance’s bill, and National Review has slammed the legislation.
Last year, political action committees (PACs) associated with Norfolk Southern donated nearly a million dollars to Republicans and Democrats as well as both parties’ leadership organizations, such as the Democrat Senatorial Campaign Committee, the Democrat Congressional Campaign Committee, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, and the National Republican Congressional Committee.
Norfolk Southern PACs also directly donated to Sens. Katie Britt (R-AL), Tim Scott (R-SC), Brian Schatz (D-HI), Todd Young (R-IN), Marco Rubio (R-FL), Jerry Moran (R-KS), John Boozman (R-KS), Patty Murray (D-WA), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), John Hoeven (R-ND), Mike Lee (R-UT), Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Ron Johnson (R-WI), Mitch McConnell (R-KY), Bill Hagerty (R-TN), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), John Thune (R-SD), Rand Paul (R-KY), Richard Burr (R-NC), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Eric Schmitt (R-MO), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Joe Manchin (D-WV), Mitt Romney (R-UT), Roger Wicker (R-MS), and Chuck Grassley (R-IA).
John Binder is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at jbinder@breitbart.com. Follow him on Twitter here.
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