- Sen. Ted Cruz sees a problem with billboards advertising projects funded by the 2021 infrastructure bill.
- Construction sites across the country point to the legislation signed by President Biden making the projects possible.
- “These displays are nothing more than campaign signs,” Cruz argued.
Numerous construction sites across the country have signs reading “Projects Funded by President Joe Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Act.”
To many, it's an innocuous notation referring to the thousands of projects funded by the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill that President Biden signed into law in 2021 with significant support from Democrats and Republicans.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz was not among them.
According to Politico, Cruz is now calling for a government investigation into whether the Biden administration violated the Hatch Act by using taxpayer funds to further its effects.
In the letter, obtained by Politico, Cruz argues that the Biden administration has “highly politicized” the infrastructure bill, pointing to signs that state the projects were made possible by the bill and include the president's name.
Cruz claims in the letter that Biden “unilaterally renamed” the bipartisan infrastructure bill “President Biden's Bipartisan Infrastructure Act,” which passed the House by a vote of 228-206 and the Senate by a vote of 69-30.
“I am writing to request an investigation into possible violations of the Hatch Act, a federal law that broadly prohibits the use of taxpayer money for campaign activities,” Cruz wrote in a letter to Hampton Dellinger of the Office of Special Counsel. “It was written by Congress, not President Biden. [the infrastructure law]”I did not do this to support the president's reelection campaign.”
“These displays are nothing more than campaign yard signs paid for by American taxpayers,” the senator added, according to Politico.
Cruz was a vocal opponent of the legislation and voted against its passage.
White House press secretary Robin Paterson told Politico in a statement that the billboard project is about “increasing transparency and informing taxpayers about how their federal dollars are being spent.”
“If Senator Cruz cared as much about Texas children having safe drinking water as he does about signs, he might have voted in favor of the infrastructure bill and spent $31 billion to address critical infrastructure needs across Texas,” the statement added.
Cruz also said the “Invest in America” logo was “intentionally designed to resemble the Biden-Harris campaign logo,” according to Politico.
The infrastructure bill is Biden's biggest domestic achievement, and the president and Democratic candidates have touted it as one of their biggest legislative victories during the campaign.
The act provided federal funding for much-needed upgrade projects for bridges, tunnels, highways, and rail infrastructure.
On this issue, Biden is seeking to distinguish himself from former President Donald Trump, who campaigned in 2016 on a platform of enacting a sweeping infrastructure plan but never offered lawmakers a viable bill during his time in the White House.
Still, Biden faces a challenge on the issue ahead of the November election, with some voters still skeptical of the law's effectiveness and a sizable share of voters giving Biden little credit for it.
A Politico Morning Consult poll conducted in April found that 40% of registered voters gave Biden an edge on infrastructure upgrades and job creation, while 37% of respondents gave Trump an edge, and in seven battleground states Biden had just a 6-point advantage over Trump on the issue (42% to 36%).
