Trouble is Gunn did his job to good.
…Now that is presenting the “facts”…{above post}
Did anyone watch the “hearing” on C-SPAN during the middle of last night…? If so can any comments come forward…
I watched the first two hours and (hopefully) got the balance on tape. More later. I will be taking a long nap first.
Jay[|)][|)]
Give us your summary, please!
What annoys the living daylights out of me, but is typical of this administration, is whether or not you agree that Gunn was doing a decent job or not, the Bush administration effectively had him fired with absolutely no plan as to what to do next… sounds vaguely like the administration’s Iraq plan. Even if you believe that Gunn was not doing his job, that is still no excuse for the administration to not have a plan in place other than wishful thinking.
Furthermore, as the point was made earlier, regardless of Gunn’s philosophical beliefs on maintaining Amtrak as a single transportation system, he did make major financial reforms, increased passenger ridership and did a good deal to return the railroad to a state of good repair considering the funding that he had to work with. That is quite an accomplishment considering that the Bush administration had no intention of being satisfied with his job performance short of the totally unrealistic goal of making Amtrak self-sufficient or putting everything in “mothballs” and museums.
Beatifully said and ample reason to confirm that Mineta does not provide
LEADERSHIP
Here is the link to Don Phillips article on the subject.
http://www.iht.com/articles/2005/11/16/business/transcol17.php
Jay
I’ll second that part about the mainstream media Don. The thing about C-Span is, it’s coming straight out of the horse. The question is which end? That is left open to viewer interpertation.
The hearing wrapped up just before 7 AM CST, what a dog and pony show. I don’t think any questions were really answered, just more raised. I watched with the opinion that Mr Gunn had been “railroaded”, and by the end, nothing had been said to change that.[|)][B)][;)]
Thanks for the link!
An interesting quote from the column: “Perhaps Mineta has accomplished one thing: solid support for Amtrak everywhere but the White House.”
As a Democrat in a Republican admin, maybe that was his double, cross your fingers and hope to die, Air Force Generals only, super top secret plan, all along!
Jay…Thanks for link to Don Phillips article…Interesting reading.
Wasn’t Don Phillips the one that had a column in Trains called Potomac Pundit?
The “Potomac Pundit” title was dropped when Phillips left the Washington Post and took a job with the International Herald. He still writes a monthly column for Trains.
Pillips is considered one of the best transportation reporters in the general circulation press. He is quite knowledgable about railroads and does not making the kind of mistakes made by many who report on railroad news for the mass media.
Jay
Mineta has shown NO leadership in any situation that has presented itselt. He has demonstrated the worst of ‘cronyism political appointment’. Transportation in the US deserves much better leadership than Mineta has provided…and any efforts at leading transportation in any direction, even a wrongheaded one, would be an improvement.
…It simply looked to me like Mineta was under the gun…{not Gunn}, as Trans. Sec. to not promote any railroad passenger service and he gave lip service only. That is what it looked like to me.
Amen! What a difference there would have been if Tommy Thompson had been appointed to DOT instead of HHS in the first term!
From Don Phillip’s Article: “In the United States, it’s the opposite. Freight is king. Outside the Washington-New York-Boston corridor, freight is actually more than king. Passenger trains out in the heartland of America survive only because freight railroads do not want the bad publicity that would come with the death of the passenger train. Freight railroads therefore have a policy of containment for passengers.”
…Ouch…
I’m glad Gunn showed up yesterday, but if I were him and he were me…I wouldn’t go near the place.
Elliot
One of the things that I see about Congressional hearings is that they are often done as more of an oppurtunity the committee members to show their viewpoints rather than get the facts and opinions of the witnesses. I think it is fair to say that most of the real stuff is staffwork done in the back offices.
Same with this dog and pony show, except that it does indicate a fairly broad based congressional unhappiness with the action of the Board of Directors. Interesting to me that the full committee Chairman Oberstar, Republican from your state told Railroad Sub-Committee La Tourette, Republican from Ohio to call the Hearing. I think it was clear that LaTourette was not being a door mat for the Amtrak Board.
Jay
The following is from the Railway Age web site.
http://www.railwayage.com/breaking_news.shtml
Late Breaking Rail Industry News
"November 15, 2005
“I don’t trust you, and I don’t think this Congress can trust you.”
Members of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Railroads Subcommittee held a hearing today on Amtrak governance in which Amtrak Board Chairman David Laney and U.S. DOT General Counsel Jeffrey Rosen were questioned about the dismissal of Amtrak President and CEO David Gunn and on the legality of Amtrak’s board, which will consist of only two members once Congress recesses for the winter.
Subcommittee members were largely supportive of Gunn, who testified that his dismissal was unexpected, “despite the disclaimers of Laney and Rosen.” “Only one person was hostile to me,” Gunn told Railway Age. That was John Mica (R-Fla.), who Gunn said “gave one of his classic performances: Privatize the Northeast Corridor and make millions. What baloney.”
Gunn, who is fairly thick-skinned, said he took umbrage that Laney and Rosen characterized his job performance as “lackluster.” “Amtrak performed pretty well this year,” he said, citing, among other improvements, a $120 million cash carryover from FY 2005.
Laney testified Gunn was fired because his “refusal to go in several new directions meant that Amtrak would continue on its present course—flat operating losses, unsustainable labor costs, and money-losing long distance [trains], food services, and more.” Gunn said all of those concerns were being addressed in Amtrak’s long-term strategic plan released earlier this year—a document in which he had a major role creating and which Laney endorsed and praised. It was only a short while ago that Laney was praising Gunn on his performance.
That’s why “none of this makes any sense,” said Gunn. “Why would Laney creat
Thanks for the news and the links. I want to keep informed and this forum is by far the best way. Thanks.
Here is a report on Mineta’s talk up in New York. I am not sure if this is his “big announcement” refered in the Railway Age item above, but he said that it is not the intent of the board to dismantle Amtrak. Of course, he is silent on the issue as to whether the Board is actually capable of keeping it going.
He did say the Board is looking for someone for the CEO slot that can turnaround the ailing railroad.
Good luck, Normy.