Trump loses key infrastructure adviser DJ Gribbin

The key infrastructure policy adviser to US president Donald Trump has resigned, according to US media reports. DJ Gribbin is "moving on" to pursue unspecified opportunities, a White House official told the Washington Examiner newspaper. Gribbin joined the White House staff in February 2017 to advise Trump on how he could fulfil his election promise to boost infrastructure spending with around US$200 billion. Gribbin previously worked as chief counsel for the Federal Highway Administration and general
April 5, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
Too late for this US bridge, but will others get saved?

The key infrastructure policy adviser to US president Donald Trump has resigned, according to US media reports.

DJ Gribbin is "moving on" to pursue unspecified opportunities, a White House official told the Washington Examiner newspaper.

Gribbin joined the White House staff in February 2017 to advise Trump on how he could fulfil his election promise to boost infrastructure spending with around US$200 billion.

Gribbin previously worked as chief counsel for the 2410 Federal Highway Administration and general counsel for the Department of Transportation. He was also a director of public sector business development at Koch Industries, a manufacturer, refiner and distributer of petroleum, chemicals and energy products.

Trump’s proposed $200 billion in federal funds is to encourage states, cities and private enterprise to invest in roads, bridges, dams, airports and other infrastructure. The money is expected to be paid out dependent upon investment by lower governments and businesses which the Trump administration will reach around $1trillion itself.

But there are doubts that Trump will get a bill through Congress that would allow his planned federal handouts, according to analysts. This is even though the money is desperately needed. Last year, the 2600 American Society of Civil Engineers gave the US’s infrastructure a D+ grade and said failure to act would cost the US economy $4 trillion by 2025.

Political opposition in Congress has pitted the opposition Demnocrats – which normally favour federal public works spending – against Trump’s Republican Party Congressional members. The Democrats have proposed their own plan that would inject $1 trillion in direct federal infrastructure spending – five times Trump’s  proposal.

Getting his own Republicans on side may not be easy either. The party is traditionally against public works spending, even more so now given Trump’s $1.5 trillion tax cut plan announced last year. Another $420 billion could be added to the national debt, some analysts have pointed out.

Finance & Funding

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • ACE/AECOM report: private sector and user-pay for English roads
    May 14, 2018
    It’s one minute to midnight for funding England’s roads, according to a timely new report, and the clock’s big hand is pointing to some form of user-pay solution, reports David Arminas Is there any way out of future user-pay funding for England’s highway infrastructure? The answer is a resounding ‘no’, according to the recently published report: Funding Roads for the Future. The brief 25-page document by the London-based Association for Consultancy and Engineering, ACE**, sums up the state of England’s ro
    Read More
  • America faces another major highway funding crisis says TCC
    October 3, 2014
    The United State is facing yet another national highway funding crisis as the country’s new fiscal year begins. Despite the fact that October 1 marked the beginning of America’s new financial year, Congress has still not passed or approved the funding for a new long-term surface transportation measure. This is really worrying the 31-member-strong Transportation Construction Coalition (TCC) which is arguing that a “failure to act” will “lead to another self-imposed funding crisis that would undermine vital r
    Read More
  • Digital opportunities: Eurasphalt & Eurobitume (E&E) event, Berlin
    July 3, 2018
    Traditional players in the European bitumen sector need to grasp digital technology in all its forms to survive. Kristina Smith reports from the recent E&E conference in Berlin.
    Read More
  • A history lesson in private public partnerships
    February 15, 2012
    Michel Démarre gives some historical insights into public-private partnerships conceived to implement urban infrastructure projects, a concept that surprisingly dates back to as early as the 13th century!
    Read More

Highlighted Content