My fellow Americans,
We are the nation that built the Golden Gate Bridge in four years and the Hoover Dam in five.
Now, it takes as much as a decade just to plan a major permit or a major infrastructure or
anything even remotely major in our country. And that's ridiculous and it's going to change.
This week, I laid out a bold and exciting new vision for the infrastructure in America that
will make our country faster, safer and wealthier. Frankly, it will make our country greater.
For too long, America has spent trillions and trillions of dollars building up other countries
while our own country decayed and our own people suffered. Our highways and railways and
airports and seaports have all been neglected and it's holding our economy back. But now,
our economy is starting to roar and it's time to rebuild our great nation. And we have to
think big and think big again.
My new vision for American infrastructure will generate $1 trillion in infrastructure
investment. We're going to give states and localities more power to decide what projects
get built and how they're funded. And we're going to get government out of the way by
massively cutting the federal approval time for infrastructure projects of a major nature
so that America can build again.
We will also revolutionize air travel in America. At a time when every passenger has GPS
technology in their pockets, our air traffic controllers rely on technology so outdated –
it's no longer manufactured. Our controllers do a great job with the technology they have,
but all the flight delays and inefficiencies still cost our economy $25 billion every single
year. We're proposing to move our air traffic control system to a new self-financing,
non-profit organization. It won't need any taxpayer money and the FAA will still be in
charge of safety. Many other countries have done this and the results have been absolutely
incredible.
Next, we're going to revitalize the 12,000 miles of inland waterways, the lifeblood of the
American heartland. Our agriculture, steel and energy producers all depend on these critical
cadres and a single towboat can hold the same load as 1,000 18-wheelers. We're going to
fix our 50-year-old system of locks and dams so American producers can get their products
to market quickly, reliably and efficiently.
In the coming weeks and months, I will outline additional projects to rebuild American
infrastructure, all of which can be achieved through my vision for a new partnership
between Washington, states and the private sector. With the talent, skill and drive of
the American people, there is no doubt to the beautiful future we can create together.
All it takes is a bold and daring vision and the will to make it real. America is going
to build again under budget and ahead of schedule.
Thank you, God bless you and God bless America.