Because Americans are driving less, mostly due to the recession (total greenhouse gas emissions are down a pretty stunning 6%, the Energy Information recently reported) the federal government doesn't have the money it needs to fully fund its highway program. But still, all the politicians agree that raising the gas tax is off the table, even though it hasn't been changed since l993.
Matthew Iglesias, a famous lefty blogger who usually hides his idealism behind his intelligence, sighs:
You don’t win the future by cutting back on your physical infrastructure out of fear of taxing pollution. Just saying.
But Toles understands what the politicians — and the public — are thinking:
Kit Stolz 