Senator Inouye says the hard choices for our nation are far from over, with a debt ceiling hike tied to trillions in budget cuts just the beginning.
"I don’t think people should look upon what happened as final solution," he says.
Inouye says he told leadership he does not want to be on the committee of six in the house and six in the senate, that has to recommend by December 15th how to further reduce the deficit another $1.5 trillion for a total budget reduction of $4 trillion.
But he says he will be keeping an eye out for issues important to hawaii, including $1.55 billion Honolulu County is hoping for for rail.
"The amounts will go into a committee, it is then up to those who are for it or against it to do their biding and I will most certainly discuss this matter with the appropriate committees," he explains. "I think they should count on it, it’s not over yet," he says.
He says there are risks though – like losing bid challenges such as Sumitomo’s to be decided by the DCCA by next week, or the chance that Bombardier could appeal to Circuit Court.
"And if it appeals it may go beyond the so-called deadline I don’t know, but whatever it is is not a scenario that we anticipated," he says.
He said concerns about the financial condition of winning rail bidder Ansaldo’s Italian parent company could make the congressional radar.
"The committee will most certainly look into it. As to how it will react, I don’t know," he says.
But says he’ll continue to push the transportation committee for money in hopes Honolulu will get a full funding grant agreement from the Federal Transit Administration.
"I just hope it will go through. I still travel to the Ewa side on every trip that I take just so I can drive back and curse myself," he says.
See the original article at: KHON2 Local News
