Mayors across the political spectrum are gathering in Washington, D.C. today to lobby for federal funding towards their cities' roads, bridges and transit in the form of a long-term renewal of the federal transportation law.
Speaking to HuffPost Live from D.C on Wednesday, Anaheim Mayor Tom Tait (R-Calif.) affirmed that Tuesday's disastrous Amtrak train derailing between Philadelphia and Washington D.C., in which at least seven people died, should serve as a reminder of how vital funding the nation's rail system is.
"I have no idea what the cause of that crash was," he told host Alyona Minkovski. "Certainly a tragedy makes us think about things like that. Everyone's condolences go out to the families of the victims from that crash but this is just something that the mayors -- we have to deal with this."
Mayors are responsible for handling "issues when there isn't adequate investment in infrastructure," and Tait, joined by Dayton, Ohio Mayor Nan Whaley (D) and over "100 throughout the country" are hoping to get Congress' attention once and for all.
"Enough is enough," Tait declared. "We need to have a long-term solution. The problem with infrastructure isn't to be solved on a year to year basis."
Watch the clip above to see the full HuffPost Live conversation with Tait and Whaley.
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