The basics:
- Gov. Mikie Sherrill calls Gateway Tunnel funding freeze political; cites impact on jobs, commuters
- Acting NJ AG Jennifer Davenport calls suspension illegal
- Gottheimer emphasizes bipartisan efforts to resolve funding impasse
- Lawsuit follows claims Trump administration withheld billions in federal funds for the project
Gov. Mikie Sherrill held a press conference in Newark Wednesday, along with acting Attorney General Jennifer Davenport, to discuss a Feb. 3 lawsuit from New Jersey and New York.
NJBIZ reported about the filing, which alleges the Trump administration is illegally withholding funding for the Gateway Tunnel Project. It came one day after another lawsuit filed by the Gateway Development Commission, in which the project manager for the work claimed breach of contract. GDC has warned that construction will halt by Feb. 6 if funding is not restored.
In her remarks, Sherrill discussed the critical nature of this project. She noted it’s personal to her, because her husband is one of those commuters who she says will lose their chance at finally having reliable train service or a one-seat ride into New York City.
“I spoke to the president about this late last week – and I told him just that,” said Sherrill. “It is critical to the region. It’s critical to jobs. It’s critical to the economy. That’s why we’re fighting.”
A losing fight?
The governor continued, “Let me clear, this is a political decision by the president to cancel money that is already in a pot being ready to be put to work. So, that’s why we’re fighting. This state lawsuit will demand that the spigot stay open for the funding. That people stay at work. And we can continue to get this project done.”
“Right now, the fight’s in the courts. We have strong state leadership behind it. Gov. [Kathy] Hochul and I are standing up to say – the people of New Jersey and New York deserve better.”
Davenport said that the lawsuit is straightforward.
“The Trump administration cannot unlawfully freeze billions of dollars it owes for the Gateway Project,” said Davenport. “So, New Jersey and New York are jointly suing in the Southern District of New York to demand that the U.S. Department of Transportation stop this illegal suspension of funds.”
Watch the press conference here:
That suspension has persisted since October. The acting attorney general says the pause violates the law in multiple ways. It also breaches requirements that federal agencies must give valid reasons for the decisions they make, she said.
“It reflects an unlawful effort by the president to punish political rivals by holding up this critical project,” said Davenport. “And that’s something the president hasn’t hidden. He publicly announced Gateway is ‘terminated’ because the Democrats are so foolish – and added there is no funding because it’s up to me.
“That should offend every American. And it’s probably pretty hard to hear if you’re scheduled to lose your job this weekend. Once again, the president has picked a fight he will not win.”
Davenport thanked New York for their partnership in taking on this fight.
“President [Donald] Trump, we will see you in court,” said Davenport.
‘He said it’
Sherrill echoed that sentiment. She said there is no credible explanation for the holdup other than “political games and moving the goalposts for this.”
“It’s definitely part of a broader political attack,” said Sherrill. “You heard the quote the attorney general just had from the president – that it was because of Democratic foolishness. I mean, he said it.”
“New Jersey is pursuing all avenues to support the people of New Jersey,” said Sherrill, noting the lawsuits from the state and GDC to fight the funding freeze. “We have our members of our federal delegation, like Josh Gottheimer, working hard at negotiating to get the money released.
“We are using every means we have to fight hard for jobs, for the economy, for the commuters of the state.”
That event followed a press call that U.S. Rep. Josh Gottheimer, D-5th District, held with reporters.
“While these [lawsuits] move forward, we also need to continue to have those conversations and negotiate a way forward here,” said Gottheimer. He noted a bipartisan effort from New Jersey and New York congressional members to find a solution to end the impasse. “Let’s all get to the table, sit down, and not give up until this thing get moving. We can work this out. I know it’s possible.
“It’s way too important for our country not to. We can get this done and fixed. We cannot let partisan politics get in the way of years of planning and bipartisan commitment and construction progress. The stakes are too high, the consequences to our economy too severe, and the impact on businesses and families too significant.”
A finer point
While Gottheimer is working toward that solution, he did acknowledge that he was dumbfounded about why the administration went down this path to potentially shut Gateway down. He echoed the sentiments about politics at play.
Work in progress
The Gateway Development Commission is sharing live feeds of construction sites. See them here.
“Because this makes from just an economic perspective, a jobs perspective, public safety perspective,” said Gottheimer. “There’s no rhyme or reason here of why they did that besides some ‘BS’ thing they came up with. Because there’s no rhyme or reason. My feeling is there’s definitely got to be some politics at play here.
“So, I think that’s why we got to work through them.”
The Trump administration froze funding citing concerns about the project’s Disadvantaged Business Enterprise program.
Gottheimer was asked later during the call to put a finer point on those concerns about politics being at play and the justification for the freeze – and whether he thinks it is driven by partisan retaliation.
“Sorry, I’ll expand,” said Gottheimer. “It’s bullshit, not BS – if that’s a finer point, I hope.”
The Trump administration has not yet responded to a request for comment about the lawsuits.
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