You have probably noticed that we have had a number of dangerous train wrecks due to deteriorating equipment and rail lines. You might think that the immediate response would be to upgrade equipment and the rail lines, and establish increased regulatory oversight. You might think that, since it makes good sense but you would be wrong. Instead, as this report lays out it is a study in corruption. The Norfolk Southern railroad a few months after their horrible East Palestine derailment, using the Republican Congress members they have rented, lobbied to weaken the rail safety bill then under consideration. But to really understand how bad this corruption was, one needs context. So start with this: In America the average speed of a freight train is 40 miles per hour, for passenger trains it is 60 mph. THere are a couple of passenger lines that get up to 80mph. In France the numbers are 186 – 195 mph. In Germany it is 200 mph. In Japan it is 186-200 mph. The truth is that like our bridges, the rail system is aged because the corporations who own the railroads don’t want to spend money on upgrading the system. This is yet another area where the U.S. does not lead, and is barely keeping up. Climate change in the United States is going to be a disaster because the only thing that matters today is profit, and we are not doing anything like what it takes to prepare for the climate trends that are occuring.
Norfolk Southern CEO Alan Shaw Credit: John Bazemore / AP
After laying low in the wake of the disastrous East Palestine, Ohio, train derailment, Norfolk Southern is back to spending millions in Congress — and a paper trail indicates that it’s lobbying for weaker regulation and rewarding members of Congress who play along.
From the day of the derailment on February 3 through the end of April, the company made no political contributions, instead receiving refunds of donations it had made to a number of campaigns. But as the national spotlight dimmed, the company got back to work.
In the last four months, Norfolk spent $1,657,500 on lobbyists who met with the same elected officials tasked with regulating the company. And in June and July alone, the company shelled out almost $200,000 to a myriad of congressional campaigns and political action committees, or PACs, according to its recent filings with the Federal Election Commission, including one from this week.
As Norfolk went on a spending spree, the Bipartisan Railway Safety Act stalled in the Senate, due to a lack of […]
Albus Eddie
on Monday, August 21, 2023 at 11:20 am
1.9 million is a lot of money. It tells you how powerful the issue is to the public and how important this issue is to the company, as they generally don’t have to spend anywhere near this much to obtain the desired result.
1.9 million is a lot of money. It tells you how powerful the issue is to the public and how important this issue is to the company, as they generally don’t have to spend anywhere near this much to obtain the desired result.