Republican criticizes Biden’s initial response to Baltimore bridge collapse as focused on spending without thoughtful consideration

A Republican lawmaker blasted President Joe Biden’s initial reaction to the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, claiming he had not put any thought into how to handle the incident.

Rep. Dan Meuser (R-PA) said Biden’s promise that the federal government would fund the repair of the bridge was “outrageous” and asserted that the federal government “can’t just take the east route.”

“It was kind of outrageous immediately for Biden to express in this tragedy the idea that he’s going to use federal funds to pay for the entirety [of the bridge],” Meuser told Fox News’s Maria Bartiromo on Thursday. “First reaction, frankly the only reaction, tends to be to spend. We just can’t take the easy route all the time and just try to spend the taxpayers’ money. There’s no thought. Just spend.”

Meuser has suggested that the United States instead try to seek the necessary funds to rebuild the bridge from the government of Singapore, where the cargo ship Dali is registered. The Dali crashed into part of the Francis Scott Key Bridge on Tuesday, causing it to fall into the Patapsco River.

The comment comes after Biden claimed he expected congressional support for the reconstruction project.

“It’s my intention that the federal government will pay for the entire cost of reconstructing that bridge, and I expect the Congress to support my effort,” Biden said on Tuesday. “This is going to take some time, but the people of Baltimore can count on us to stick with them at every step of the way until the port is reopened and the bridge is rebuilt.”

It is not clear what the repairs and restoration will cost, but federal officials estimated that it could cost as much as $2 billion, Roll Call reported. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg claimed the federal government has about $950 million in funds authorized for emergency use, the rest will need to be approved by Congress.

CLICK HERE TO READ MORE FROM THE WASHINGTON EXAMINER

The cause for the crash has not been determined so far, but the ship issued a “mayday” warning prior to the accident. Six people are believed to have died. Two other people were injured in the collapse but were rescued.

The collapse is also expected to have a major economic impact on the surrounding community because it forced the Port of Baltimore to close. Traffic that would have gone through the port has been rerouted to nearby ports such as Norfolk, Virginia, and Philadelphia.