Map-21 is a highway bill, not a transportation bill, it cuts support for public transit in favor of highway expansion
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- The politics DA proves the aff – there is a systemic exclusion in current transportation policy
- AT: Politics- Critique of Political Capital
- Political capital is an excuse to rank and choose priorities such that identity politics is always left behind
K of Politics DABy placing other political concerns above the plan, the negative fuels the traditional mode of political thinking that prioritizes the privilegedBullard et al 4 (Robert Doyle, Glenn Steve Johnson, and Angel O. Torres, Bullard is Professor of Sociology and Director of the Environmental Justice Resource Center at Clark Atlanta University, Highway Robbery: Transportation Racism & New Routes to Equity, p. 9) AH Transportation planning has duplicated the discrimination used by other racist government institutions and private entities to maintain white privilege. The transportation options that are available to most Americans today were shaped largely by federal policies as well as individual and institutional discrimination. Transportation options are further restricted by both the geographic changes that have taken place in the nation's metropolitan regions and historical job discrimination dictating limited incomes.27 Transportation decision-making is political. Building roads in the job-rich suburbs while at the same time blocking transit from entering these same suburbs are political decisions buttressed by race and class dynamics. In cities and metropolitan regions all across the country, inadequate or nonexistent suburban transit serves as invisible "Keep Out" signs directed against people of color and the poor. The politics DA proves the aff – there is a systemic exclusion in current transportation policyBullard et al 4 (Robert Doyle, Glenn Steve Johnson, and Angel O. Torres, Bullard is Professor of Sociology and Director of the Environmental Justice Resource Center at Clark Atlanta University, Highway Robbery: Transportation Racism & New Routes to Equity, p. 9) AH Conceptually, Highway Robbery extends and expands the analysis put forth in Just Transportation—using the same environmental-justice and transportation-equity lenses -but incorporating the changes and new developments that have taken place since 1997. One book could never tell the many transportation horror stories that exist in this nation, and this one only scratches the surface of this national tragedy. Of the hundreds of books that cover a wide range of transportation topics, few have dared to treat transportation racism as a central theme. Our analysis exposes the nation's dirty secret and forces transportation racism out of the closet. The authors assembled for this volume come from diverse racial, ethnic, and class backgrounds. Whether activist or academic, lawyer or client, planner or resident, personal transportation experience infuses each perspective. In nine chapters, the authors present real case studies that call into question the fairness and legality of many US transportation policies, practices, and procedures. They also question the willingness of government to vigorously enforce existing transportation and civil rights laws with regard to race, color, or national origin. The authors clearly show that the nation is far from achieving colorblind transportation planning and spending in metropolitan regions coast to coast. AT: Politics- Critique of Political CapitalConserving political capital is always the excuse for never acting in an oppressed groups interestsJones, Communications Director for the Human Rights Program @ Harvard Law School, 2009 (Michael A., May 6, Gayrights.change.org, “Does Obama have Enough Political Capital to Nominate a Lesbian for the Supreme Court”, http://gayrights.change.org/blog/view/does_obama_have_enough_political_capital_to_nominate_a_lesbian_for_the_supreme_court , Accessed: 7/7/2009) Two of the ugliest words in politics (imho) are "political capital," because they generally are used when a group is about to be thrown under the bus. We've heard it used in debates about overturning "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," as well as when it comes to other LGBT rights issues, like repealing the Defense of Marriage Act. Political capital is not an accurate metaphor- the Senate is an inherently conservative institution, and is structured in a way that makes it easy for special interests to block reform. The deck is always stacked against major change, regardless of presidential capital.Yglesias, Associate Editor of the Atlantic Monthly, 2009 (Matthew, June 15, “The Limits of Political Capital”, http://yglesias.thinkprogress.org/archives/2009/06/the-limits-of-political-capital.php Accessed: 7/7/2009) I think the answer to the puzzle is simply that “political capital” is a pretty misleading metaphor. The fact of the matter is that the Senate is what it is—to wit, an institution with an enormous status quo bias, that’s also biased in favor of conservative areas. On top of that, the entire structure of the US Congress with its bicameralism and multiple overlapping committees is biased toward making it easy for concentrated interests to block reform. Between them, Dianne Feinstein, Barbara Boxer, Chuck Schumer, Kristen Gillibrand, Bill Nelson, Dick Durbin, Roland Burriss, Arlen Specter, Bob Casey, Sherrod Brown, Carl Levin, Amy Klobuchar, Kay Hagan, Bob Menendez, Frank Lautenberg, Mark Warner, Jim Webb, Patty Murray, Maria Cantwell, Ted Kennedy, John Kerry, and Evan Bayh represent 50 percent of the country’s population. But that only adds up to 22 Senators—you need thirty-eight more to pass a bill. Meanwhile, the fact of the matter is that in recent years plenty of incumbent Republicans have been brought down by primary challenges from the right and as best I know zero Democrats have been brought down by primary challenges from the left. This has been a huge advantage for the Democrats in terms of winning elections—it’s an important part of the reason Democrats have these majorities. But it also means that when it comes to policymaking, Republicans have a lot of solidarity but Democratic leaders have little leverage over individual members. In other words, nobody thinks that Collin Peterson (D-MN) is going to lose his seat over badly watering down Waxman-Markey and that matters a lot more than airy considerations of capital. Political capital is an excuse to rank and choose priorities such that identity politics is always left behindRuby-Sachs, J.D. from the University of Toronto and practices civil litigation, 2008 (Emma, 11/24, “Ranking the Issues: Gay Rights in an Economic Crisis”, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/emma-rubysachs/ranking-the-issues-gay-ri_b_146023.html, Accessed: 7/7/2009) On Friday, the Washington Times reported that Barack Obama will be waiting until 2010 to push for the end of Don't Ask Don't Tell. Obama staffers say the delay is necessary to allow for consensus building. The move raises a number of questions and concerns. At first brush it seems like smart politics: avoid a Clintonesque botch and give yourself some time to get support before taking on the gay issues. In fact, as a person as well as a lesbian, I find myself worrying more about health care and the economy than the ability of LGBT people to serve openly in the military. But just how should we be ranking identity politics in this grab bag moment of crisis and transition? The classic approach to politics is to rank priorities and measure the finite bowl of political capital. If Obama pushes hard on a green new deal, he likely won't have much left for universal health care. If he backs off of serious economic regulation, then he might get more support for social programs from Republicans. Because gay civil rights struggles affect fewer individuals and relate to less quantifiable harms, it's hard to justify putting them at the top of the list. The alternative is to reject the ranked priorities political model altogether. There is little evidence that sway and support is finite in the American political system. Political capital relates to the actions of the leader, yes, but can be infinitely large or non-existent at any point in time. In some ways, the more you get done, the more the bowl of capital swells. Ranking America's problems to conserve political influence is a narrow minded approach to solving this crisis. Putting banks at the top of the list avoids the plight of large employers (like car companies - as much as we love to hate their executives). Sending health care and other social programs to second or third place, leaves those immediately affected by the crisis with nothing to fall back on. Finally, ignoring the disenfranchisement of a segment of the population breeds discontent, encourages protest, boycotts (a definite harm in this economy) and violence. It divides families (especially those who are still unable to sponsor their partner into the United States), imposes higher tax burdens on gay couples, denies benefits to gay spouses in many employment situations and polarizes social conservatives and social liberals in a time when consensus is essential. The first years of the Obama presidency cannot be about determining who and what matters and who and what doesn't. There should be no ranking of political promises and political objectives. As President of the United States, we expect Obama to be able to multitask. As LGBT people, we should not stop fighting for the end of DADT, but also the repeal of the Defense of Marriage Act and the implementation of hate crime legislation that recognizes LGBT victims. Identity politics do not need to fall to the back burner just because times are tough. Working towards full LGBT rights should, and hopefully will, remain a priority for all of us. 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