Some say the adage about pigs flying originated with Washington politicians who have an uncanny ability to get nothing accomplished. If they did accomplish something - the politicians we mean - then said swine would take to the air. The horror.
We’ve been through countless rounds of Obamacare or Obamadon’tcare (depending on your view); government shutdowns where more than 80 percent of federal employees were still on the job (huh?); budget and appropriation battles; immigration; and the list goes on. And nothing gets resolved - everything is just “continued.”
And no one agrees on anything. The exception to that last sentence was both chambers unanimously agreeing to continue paying our military during the shutdown caused by the politicians. We don’t even count that one. Who would vote against that?
So the pigs remained grounded. That is until the earth took a bump on its axis or something and last week the House passed a nearly unanimous Water Resources Reform and Development Act. The Senate passed its own similar version earlier. The two chambers are expected to work out the differences, and present the bill to President Obama, who has indicated he will sign it.
Look up in the air.
That highfalutin sounding bill basically means sufficient federal dollars to deepen the Savannah port, along with other important economic development projects. And it really is about economic development. Without deepening the port, massive new cargo ships will bypass Savannah simply because they can’t get in. And that would devastate Georgia’s economy.
The federal government needs to focus on national/international issues - our national security, foreign trade and economic development. It appears, for once, they’ve seen the light. Amazing what Washington can do when they put aside petty party politics and focus on what is best for the country as a whole.
The Savannah ports project, according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, is expected to show a 5.5-to-1 benefit to cost ratio. In other words, for every dollar spent on the project, the nation will reap $5.50 in benefits. Ask any banker, that’s a pretty good return.
Yep, sometimes pigs do fly. And in this case, about time.