“We’re doing a ton of creative work to help smooth backups and clear backlogs,” Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said in an interview, citing efforts to add inland storage ports to clear the container pileup on Georgia’s coast. “The administration has a role to play.”
Kemp, a first-term Republican, brought up the new storage sites for containers, too, along with other efforts to expand the bustling Savannah port’s capacity as a sign that Georgians have “rolled up their sleeves” and taken decisive action as Washington waffled.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp speaks at a press conference in August 2020 in Atlanta. Kemp is gearing up for what could be one of the nation’s toughest elections as former U.S. Sen. David Perdue threatens a primary challenge and Democrat Stacey Abrams prepares for a possible rematch. (Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images/TNS)
Credit: TNS
Credit: TNS
He also joined more than a dozen other GOP governors to urge Biden to allow more truck drivers under the age of 21 to haul cargo between states. The average age of a Georgia commercial license holder is 52, and Kemp said changing the limit could add 25,000 drivers a year.
“Getting young people into this industry is something that we’ve got to figure out how to do in a safe way,” said Mitch Sheppard, an executive with the Howard Sheppard shipping firm.
State Democrats, meanwhile, have embarked on an extended victory lap to promote the infrastructure measure, which will pour billions of dollars into roads, bridges, utilities, public transportation and initiatives to combat climate change.
All eight Georgia Republicans in the U.S. House opposed it, raising concerns about the cost and programs aimed at cutting carbon emissions. At stops around the state, Democrats have highlighted projects that would benefit from the funding – and reminding audiences of the GOP opposition.
At a stop Tuesday in Augusta, U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff stood with local leaders near the site of a renovation of a pedestrian bridge that spans the Savannah River.
“This is a generational investment in America’s infrastructure, and we did it in Congress in a bipartisan way. And that matters,” he said. “All of these upgrades and investments are on their way.”
ATLANTA – U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., holding the microphone, speaks during an event on Nov. 22, 2021 outside the Atlanta University Center Robert W. Woodruff Library about legislation to provide cybersecurity training funds to historically Black colleges and universities. (Photo Credit: U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff’s office.)
Credit: Photo Contributed
Credit: Photo Contributed
