The Man With $1.2 Trillion To Spend And An Infrastructure Plan To Sell

(Bloomberg) -- In November 2021, President Joe Biden signed the $1.2 trillion Bipartisan Infrastructure Act into law. That hasn't translated into a clear political win for a president seeking reelection, though.

According to a recent Bloomberg/Morning Consult poll, only 38% of voters in seven swing states say they trust President Biden to handle infrastructure, compared to 42% who trust former President Donald Trump. That's not just bad news for President Biden, it's bad news for White House Senior Advisor Mitch Landrieu, the president's “infrastructure coordinator.”

Senior Washington Correspondent Saleha Mohsin sat down with Landrieu for The Big Take podcast. Landrieu is charged with the implementation of the law — which includes how that $1.2 trillion is spent. Mohsin and Landrieu discussed the works-in-progress and the challenges facing an administration that wants credit for uniting Congress on this investment, and for the size and scope of the investment itself.

“To date, we have 38,000 projects in some level of formation across the United States of America right now,” said Landrieu. “Presidents for the last 50, 60, 70 years, have been talking about doing this and could never get it done.”

In the two years since the law's passage, Republicans have criticized it for mandating that the funds be spent in ways that align with Biden's policy agendas.

In defending the administration's approach, Landrieu cited his record in Louisiana—first as lieutenant governor and then as New Orleans mayor — working to rebuild after the damage of Hurricane Katrina. He told the show that he thinks about that period of time “every day.” 

“When I was rebuilding the city, the question was to rebuild it fast or to rebuild it right,” he said. “And to rebuild it right, sometimes it takes longer, and it's harder, and you've got to dig deeper, and people don't see it right away.”

To aid in the visibility effort, Landrieu and his fellow cabinet members have been traveling the country to promote the president's agenda and tout what they say will be an “infrastructure decade.” 

“We didn't pass the bill for election purposes,” Landrieu said. “Everybody hopes they get credit for what they do, but this is a very, very deep dive.” 

Most recently, Republicans in Congress have sought cuts to infrastructure spending amid a looming government shutdown. Meanwhile, there are critics of the bill who argue that $1.2 trillion isn't enough — especially if proposed spending cuts are made to agency budgets that handle infrastructure. Mohsin pointed out that China invests in infrastructure on a similar scale annually.

“No doubt, we're way behind,” Landrieu said. “It's not as much as we need to fix every problem all over America all at one time, but it is a massively good down payment on our future.”Hear the rest of the conversation iHeart, Apple Podcasts, Spotify. 

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