Late February 2009: Reporter Disproves ‘Disneyland to Las Vegas’ Train Claim by Lawmaker

Representative Mary Bono Mack (R-CA) expresses her outrage over the so-called “Disneyland to Las Vegas” train (see February 13, 2009 and After), saying she cannot believe President Obama’s economic stimulus plan has ”$1 billion wasted on a magnetic-levitation train from LA to Sin City.” When challenged by reporter Dick Spotswood over the disproven claim, Mack sends a staff member to “get him the bill, it’s right there, show him.” As Spotswood later reports, “A few minutes later, a staffer emerges with a copy and quietly says ‘it’s not in the bill.’” [Marin Independent Journal, 3/1/2009]