(Source: Roll Call, July 25, 2024)
Election-year politics combined with a tight legislative schedule are complicating the effort to pass rail safety legislation stemming from last year’s East Palestine, Ohio, derailment, as the bill’s main GOP supporter, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, joins Donald Trump on the campaign trail. “What Vance essentially did was put the public safety and workers ahead of business, which is sort of a unique stance from a Republican,” said Mark Wallace, First Vice President of the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen, in an interview. “I was surprised to see him on it initially, but he has worked with Senator Brown’s office, with the unions — he’s worked with everybody that has an interest in trying to get this legislation moved forward.”
Full story: Roll Call