New Orleans residents frustrated with Biden's plan to destroy historic overpass
Fox News' Raymond Arroyo speaks with locals about the president's infrastructure plan to tear down the Claiborne Expressway
Fox News contributor Raymond Arroyo visited New Orleans' historic Claiborne Expressway for "The Ingraham Angle" Tuesday. The expressway is at risk of being torn down by President Biden’s broad infrastructure plan that will allocate $621 billion to address historic inequities including the dismantling of interstate systems across the country. The Claiborne's overpass, which was built in 1968, has become a landmark to locals as well as a convenient route through the area.
Biden has mentioned how the Claiborne overpass was first constructed to surpass the historically Black neighborhood of Treme, dividing racial communities. To enhance racial equality, the president plans to spend $20 billion remodeling other highways that fit the same bill.
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New Orleans residents are not happy with the potential of Claiborne coming down, complaining that traffic will only worsen and the common meeting place, underneath the overpass, will be destroyed.
"All the people need the bridge for going to work, to go places," one woman said. "I ain’t going to support them to take that bridge down."
"It’s kind of a place everybody goes to party," one man said. "On Sunday, you’ve got that whole overpass packed. When you take away the overpass, where are we going to hang out and party?"
A second female resident holding a small child expressed that the Claiborne overpass represents her life and a place of community. Meanwhile, Biden’s American Jobs plan claims these demolition projects will "increase opportunity, advance racial equity and environmental justice."
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The woman went on to explain that the $20 billion would be better spent addressing other major issues in the area like severe flooding. Another male resident then urged the president to simply leave Claiborne alone.
"If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it."
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