| | | | |  | | By Sam Ogozalek and Chris Marquette | Welcome back! We hope you had a restful Labor Day. With help from James Bikales
| | — September is here, and so is a potential brawl over funding the federal government. Get ready for a busy few weeks. — Vice President Kamala Harris vowed to put a Republican in her Cabinet if elected. Could it be the DOT secretary? — Maryland’s governor is planning a fall blitz on Capitol Hill, seeking federal dollars for the costly rebuild of the Francis Scott Key Bridge. IT’S TUESDAY: You’re reading Morning Transportation, your Washington policy guide to everything that moves. We’re glad you’re here. Send tips, feedback and song lyrics to Sam at sogozalek@politico.com, Chris at cmarquette@politico.com and Oriana at opawlyk@politico.com and follow us at @SamOgozalek, @ChrisMarquette_ and @oriana0214. “I had to escape/ The city was sticky and cruel/ Maybe I should have called you first/ But I was dying to get to you/ I was dreaming while I drove/ The long straight road ahead, uh uh yeah.” Want to receive this newsletter every weekday? Subscribe to POLITICO Pro. You’ll also receive daily policy news and other intelligence you need to act on the day’s biggest stories.
| | BACK TO WORK: August is over — welcome back to reality. The House and Senate will be in session on Sept. 9, and it’s time for some preelection spending drama on Capitol Hill. MT’s savvy readers don’t need reminding that appropriations bills need to be finished before Oct. 1 to avoid a government shutdown. A patch is almost certainly needed, but hard-right conservatives are mulling linking any continuing resolution to a proposal requiring proof of citizenship to vote. To catch up on the funding details, Jordain Carney, Nicholas Wu and Jennifer Scholtes have more here. In the meantime, we’ve got you covered on everything you missed last week.
| | A REPUBLICAN FOR HARRIS: Vice President Kamala Harris told CNN Thursday that she would appoint a Republican to a position in her Cabinet if elected president, and your MT host couldn’t help but glance toward the top spot at DOT’s Navy Yard HQ. Under Barack Obama, Republican Ray LaHood served as DOT secretary and Norman Mineta, a Democrat, was DOT secretary for George W. Bush. Just saying. — “Yes, I would” appoint a Republican to the Cabinet, Harris said, noting she hasn’t honed in on any potential pick.
| | FALL PUSH FOR FEDERAL DOLLARS: Maryland Gov. Wes Moore is set to visit Capitol Hill in September, trying to convince lawmakers to act on legislation to rebuild Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge, which was destroyed by a container ship in March. He told POLITICO in an interview last week that he has spoken with over 200 members and plans a fall push to find a vehicle on which legislation responding to the bridge collapse can move. S. 4114 (118), by Sen. Ben Cardin (D-Md.), would provide a 100 percent federal cost share rather than the standard 90 percent. — “The plan is that I will continue making trips down there in addition to phone calls and just being in consistent communication,” Moore said. Chris has the story. Moore expressed confidence that legislation would move and noted he’s been “really encouraged by the conversations that we’ve had” with House Appropriations Chair Tom Cole (R-Okla.) and THUD Subcommittee Chair Steve Womack (R-Ark.). NEXT STEPS: We also sat down with Maryland Transportation Secretary Paul Wiedefeld to discuss what’s next for the bridge. He expects the state to pick a contractor to undertake the progressive design-build by the end of August or early September. Then, technicians will review the options and bring their pick to Wiedefeld, who will sign off on it, Chris reports.
| | LAX OVERSIGHT CITED: The NTSB says a former military helicopter crash in West Virginia was caused in part by the operator’s inadequate inspections and a lack of FAA oversight. The accident, which left six people dead, occurred in June 2022. The safety board found that the operator, MARPAT Aviation, didn’t sufficiently inspect the helicopter. But it also laid blame on the FAA, saying the regulator contributed to the accident through its “inadequate” inspection and maintenance standards for former military helicopters operating with an experimental exhibition airworthiness certificate. The NTSB issued six new recommendations to the FAA, which in a statement said it takes such recommendations seriously and will respond “within an appropriate timeframe,” Sam reports. STRIKE LOOMS: Flyers could face disruptions if United Airlines flight attendants strike amid a labor dispute. They voted to authorize such action, the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA announced last week. The union represents 28,000 at the airline. The vote does not mean a strike is imminent. United says it continues to work toward an “industry-leading agreement” for its flight attendants and that negotiations are ongoing. Sam has more here. MONTHLY STATS: In June, airlines canceled 1.3 percent of 651,799 domestic flights, according to data DOT released Friday. That's lower than the 2.1 cancellation rate in June 2023.
| | POSSIBLE ROADBLOCK: Ford’s efforts to boost its EV offerings could take a hit if China hawks in Congress successfully push the Defense Department to add a major EV battery maker to its entity list. Republican Sen. Marco Rubio and Rep. John Moolenaar sent a letter to the Pentagon last week warning that Contemporary Amperex Technology, which provides services to Ford, has deep ties to the Chinese government. — A spokesperson for CATL denied the accusations. Ford didn’t respond to a request for comment. But the automaker has already scaled back plans to build a CATL facility in Michigan, Ari Hawkins reports. CHARGERS, CHARGERS, CHARGERS: The Biden administration announced last week that the number of public EV charging ports nationwide has reached 192,000, double the amount when it took office in 2021. The private sector has played a major role in that growth, but the administration touted the “catalyzing effect” its programs have had on the industry. It also announced $521 million in grants for states and local officials to build more chargers. James Bikales has the details. A HELPING HAND: An Energy Department official told James that the Biden administration is weighing whether to use federal money to prop up U.S. critical mineral projects, whose owners are struggling due to low prices for lithium and nickel, driven by Chinese oversupply. It’s still unclear how much the move would cost. ABOUT THOSE EV JOBS: A new group led by veteran Republican consultant Mike Murphy launched a six-figure ad campaign in the swing state of Michigan promoting the job-creating benefits of EVs. The 30-second spot from the American EV Jobs Alliance touts the tens of thousands of new jobs created by the EV industry in Michigan and asks, “Want those jobs in China instead?” The group is planning to launch a similar campaign in the coming weeks in Georgia, another swing state that has become an EV manufacturing hub. “When politicians mislead voters about EVs, they are hurting American jobs. Nobody wins then but China,” said Murphy, who is also the founder of the EV Politics Project, which works to promote EV adoption among Republicans.
| | A — VERY — LONG FLIGHT DELAY: Boeing’s troubled Starliner is set to return to Earth — with no astronauts aboard. NASA has opted to keep the craft’s two test pilots at the International Space Station until February, when they will catch a ride home with Boeing’s rival, SpaceX. Starliner will return to Earth remotely in early September following thruster and helium leak issues, a new black eye for Boeing in a year full of crisis. Boeing in a statement said it continues to focus “first and foremost” on the safety of the crew and craft, which arrived at the ISS in June.
| | — “In the Quest for Electric Planes, Hybrid May Be the Answer.” Wall Street Journal. — “Tesla’s Rivals Still Can’t Use Its Superchargers.” New York Times. — “New Boeing CEO holds first meeting with FAA chief.” Reuters. — “Exclusive: Tesla asked Canada for lower tariff on China-made EVs, government source says.” Reuters. — “EU new car sales flat in July as battery-electric slumps, industry body ACEA says.” Reuters. — “Rail worker’s death in Ohio railyard highlights union questions about remote control trains.” AP. — “Deal reached with Norfolk Southern to expand rail service in parts of Virginia.” WTOP. — “California lawmakers pass first-in-the-nation leaded aviation fuel ban.” POLITICO Pro. — “California Assembly passes bill to enable EVs to send power back to the grid.” POLITICO Pro. | | | | Follow us on Twitter | | | | Follow us | | | | |
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