Now Is the Time to Pass Infrastructure Bill, Former HUD Secretary Says
*By Carlo Versano*
If there's one issue on which President Trump and Congress can work together, it's infrastructure. That's according to Henry Cisneros, a veteran private equity investor and former HUD Secretary under President Bill Clinton.
Trump called for a "great rebuilding of America's crumbling infrastructure" in his State of the Union address on Tuesday ー the third time he's floated an infrastructure deal in an address to Congress. But this time, with the House in the hands of Democrats and unlikely to work with the president on any of his divisive policy goals like immigration, there exists a fighting chance that this could finally be the year a major infrastructure bill is hammered out.
While Trump did not mention any specifics of an infrastructure overhaul policy, he called for a $1 trillion plan back in 2017 that would draw on both federal funds and private sector investment.
"That's a new kind of hybrid we haven't seen before," Cisneros told Cheddar. He thinks it's the way forward for a major refurbishing of the nation's airports, power grid, highways, ports, and internet bandwidth.
Much of the work that needs to be done today needed to be done back when Cisneros was working in the Clinton administration, he said. But since then, technological advancements ー from ridehailing to renewable energy ー are making the country's infrastructure even more stressed as it shoulders the demands of the modern age.
"We're behind and falling farther behind just because we haven't responded to these new technologies," he said.
But how do you raise more than a trillion dollars in an age of political gridlock? How do you even decide on what projects to tackle?
The public-private model is attractive because institutional capital ー think pension funds or university endowments ー is warming to the idea of allocating some of its assets in infrastructure plays as long-term investments. The returns aren't "hedge fund returns," Cisneros said, but they are reasonable and generally stable, because once a big construction project starts, it almost always gets completed.
And the benefits are widespread. Better infrastructure is crucial to both national security and economic competitiveness, and it makes people's' day-to-day lives better. With private cash looking to get in and the president looking for a policy win, this could at long last be the time to make something happen, Cisneros said.
"Maybe there's a chance to have a serious conversation among adults."
For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/former-hud-secretary-says-private-investment-funds-are-needed-to-fix-crumbling-infrastructure).
Wealthfront’s CFO Alan Iberman talks the $2.05B IPO and the major moment for robo banking as the company bets on AI, automation, and “self-driving money."
A rare magnum of Dom Pérignon Vintage 1961 champagne that was specially produced for the 1981 wedding of Prince Charles and Lady Diana has failed to sell during an auction. Danish auction house Bruun Rasmussen handled the bidding Thursday. The auction's house website lists the bottle as not sold. It was expected to fetch up to around $93,000. It is one of 12 bottles made to celebrate the royal wedding. Little was revealed about the seller. The auction house says the bids did not receive the desired minimum price.
The New York Times and President Donald Trump are fighting again. The news outlet said Wednesday it won't be deterred by Trump's “false and inflammatory language” from writing about the 79-year-old president's health. The Times has done a handful of stories on that topic recently, including an opinion column that said Trump is “starting to give President Joe Biden vibes.” In a Truth Social post, Trump said it might be treasonous for outlets like the Times to do “FAKE” reports about his health and "we should do something about it.” The Republican president already has a pending lawsuit against the newspaper for its past reports on his finances.
OpenAI has appointed Slack CEO Denise Dresser as its first chief of revenue. Dresser will oversee global revenue strategy and help businesses integrate AI into daily operations. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently emphasized improving ChatGPT, which now has over 800 million weekly users. Despite its success, OpenAI faces competition from companies like Google and concerns about profitability. The company earns money from premium ChatGPT subscriptions but hasn't ventured into advertising. Altman had recently announced delays in developing new products like AI agents and a personal assistant.
President Donald Trump says he will allow Nvidia to sell its H200 computer chip used in the development of artificial intelligence to “approved customers” in China. Trump said Monday on his social media site that he had informed China’s leader Xi Jinping and “President Xi responded positively!” There had been concerns about allowing advanced computer chips into China as it could help them to compete against the U.S. in building out AI capabilities. But there has also been a desire to develop the AI ecosystem with American companies such as chipmaker Nvidia.
