The Snyder administration has a new theme song: Bridge Over
Troubled Waters or in this instance, No bridge.
The governor in January made a bold move by endorsing a second
span between Detroit and Windsor. House Democrats were elated since
that was their top legislative priority in that 20,000 jobs would flow
out of the thing, if it ever got built. Legislative Republicans were
anything but elated.
And the new governor is discovering the "if" is huge.
He publicly glows that "We're doing fine on the bridge."
With all due respect to the eternal optimist, he's in denial.
And that is not a river in Egypt!
He does not have the GOP votes to pass this. Period.
The chair of the senate transportation committee says he is
neutral which is as good as a no vote and his counterpart in the house
is saying he is open to it, but he does that out of deference to his
GOP governor.
You see lots of Republicans worship at the alter of the private
sector and many feel the owner of the Ambassador Bridge should be given
a chance to build the second span. The gov's guys contend Mr. Mouroun
can bid on this public- project but that has not appeased the R's.
Over a month ago, the administration revealed it was preparing a
compromise to bridge the gap and it would be coming out in two weeks.
That two weeks went by and sources said it would be within the next two
weeks and those two weeks came and went too.
Now the governor proudly announces that this thing will be teed
up next week when lawmakers return to work. But it may be sitting on
the tee until steps up to hit it and so far no one has volunteered.
All this means, the governor will need some Democrats to get this
done, but the D's will want something in return and once they have him
over the barrel, they will ask for the moon and the stars.
And then was does Mr. Optimism do? If he caves to the Democrats,
the Republicans will be unhappy, but if he does not bend to the D's,
his chances of getting the bridge are not good.
Somebody cue Simon and Garfinkel.