By Harry Kane

Congressman Michael Capuano spoke about the local economy, and how Washington’s gridlock is adversely affecting the Somerville residents at the Chamber of Commerce Government Affairs breakfast at Mount Vernon Restaurant on Jan. 31.

Congressman Capuano is in his seventh term, representing the eighth congressional district in congress, which includes Cambridge, Chelsea, Somerville and approximately 70 percent of Boston.

“It’s a good forum to be able to get to see your congressman and find out what’s going on and maybe get a couple words in there about where you see some issues and things that you think Washington should be working on,” said Richard Brenner, the Vice President of Commercial lending at Winter Hill Bank.

Like many others, Brenner came to the meeting to hear about the economy from the esteemed congressman and ex-mayor of Somerville from 1990-1998.

“As far as what’s going on in Washington, the truth is, this is the first time in a long time in my opinion that what is being written is pretty accurate: we’re fighting like cats and dogs,” said the Congressman.

Capuano is a member of the House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure. There is currently a transportation bill on the agenda in the House of Representatives.  According to Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John L. Mica, “This legislation will be the largest transportation reform bill since the Interstate Highway System was created in 1956.”

“Everybody agrees that we need to invest in infrastructure, but on one side they say we want to invest in infrastructure but we won’t add any more money. Now everyone here knows we cannot do anything unless we add more money to the transportation system,” said the Congressman.

He also commented on some of the transportation related programs that were slated for the future but are now looking bleak as budget cuts steamroll the progress made by our city officials.

“I do not know how much the MBTA has to commit to the green line,” said Capuano. “I believe with every ounce of my soul that they want to build the green line.”

With the green line extension being postponed until November of 2016, along with the forecasted Union Square and Washington St. stations opening, there is still a lot of uncertainty surrounding the project.

“I think we have to wake up and figure out how much they [MBTA] have and then grab as much of that as we can to build as much of the green line as we can and to get the most service for the people of Somerville as quickly as we can. If we hang onto some dream that cannot be funded…that will in the long run end up hurting the people of Somerville.”

In the midst of the economic downturn Capuano states that there’s no way to get everything we want. If we had a choice between three things Somerville can only choose one of them.

“Right now we have priority but we run the risk of losing that priority with another administration if we don’t just finally wake up and act like adults, which we’ll know within the next couple of months, I think, how much money we have to spend on it,” said Capuano.

The Congressman said that budgets for community bike path may be eliminated. “We have a cute little bike path, and it works a little bit for some people commuting but the one we want along the green line is not for cuteness it’s not so you can have a nice little jog on the weekend: it’s to get to work.”

Capuano was furious when it came to the possibility of downsizing Amtrak. He noted the importance of traveling between New York and Boston. “They want to reduce Amtrak by 25 percent. It should be improved not cut back. It hurts our businesses, it hurts our tax-base and it hurts this country in competitive nature.”

In the end Capuano feels that the future is uncertain and there will be budget cuts across the board. “Here’s what’s going to happen: over the next ten years every single department in the country will have to cut between seven and ten percent every year, one on top of the other. The first ten percent, yeah sure we could probably suck it up, maybe the second. Do you really think we could take another and another and another?”

~Video by Harry Kane