New Hampshire governor pushes Biden for flexibility in implementing policies
Gov. Chris Sununu explained why he asked Biden for flexibility in implementing Democrats' $1.2T infrastructure bill.
New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu, R, compared the flexibility afforded governors by the Trump administration to Biden’s "one size fits all" approach, telling Fox News Digital he's hopeful the Biden administration will change its tune, but that they "got to deliver."
Sununu is one of 16 governors who sent a letter to Biden last month requesting "maximum regulatory flexibility" in implementing Democrats' $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill.
"For the [infrastructure bill] to be implemented successfully, states have to be partners to the federal government. It is critical that your administration consider how simplicity, flexibility, and finality will drastically improve states’ ability to develop and implement plans," the letter read.
"Having flexibility with how we use funds is so critical," Sununu told Fox News Digital, highlighting the difference between former President Donald Trump’s approach in implementing the CARES Act, and Joe Biden’s implementation of the $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill.
"The former Trump administration was very good about saying, ‘governors, you guys lead the way,’" Sununu said. "New Hampshire might be very different than Arizona, California, Massachusetts, whatever it might be. We all have different needs, different populations, different dynamics."
Idaho’s Gov. Brad Little, R, made similar remarks, telling Fox News Digital "all 50 states are vastly different, and what works in Idaho doesn’t work in Virginia or Maryland."
Sununu said the Biden administration is taking a one-size-fits-all approach to governing, giving governors thousands of pages of rules that take "teams just to understand."
"It drives on their agenda, not what’s best for New Hampshire," he said.
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Sununu also noted that his concerns are not political, but based on each governor's knowledge of the issues and priorities in his or her state.
"I can guarantee you the governor of New York wants as much flexibility as the governor of New Hampshire does, or California or Florida. We’re all fighting for that flexibility," Sununu said.
Sununu said that, as of Sunday, he had not gotten the response from the Biden administration to the letter he was hoping for.
"They try to be open, they’ll say that [they’re] going to consider flexibility, but at the end of the day, that letter comes back, and it’s not there," he said.
"There’s a little bit of talking that talk, but at the end of the day, they have to deliver, and we haven’t really seen it yet," he said, while acknowledging that he is hopeful for a change.
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"They say they’re pivoting, they say they’re moving more toward flexibility. Saying it in Washington is one thing, but delivering it is very different."
Sununu said he’s "cautiously optimistic" that the Biden administration will begin to give governors flexibility, but that they "got to deliver."
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