Capitol Agenda for the Week of Nov. 12: Honoring Those Who Served Our Nation
Over the weekend, the nation reflected on the immense contributions veterans have made in the workplace and across our communities. We all know a veteran. And, the trucking industry is home to a large number of them.
FedEx Freight’s Robert Roth, or “Robbie,” as he’s known, is one of many such heroes guaranteeing safety on our highways.
Retired from the Army nearly two years ago after serving deployments that included Afghanistan, he was among the competitors at the National Truck Driving Championships in August, competing in the 3-axle class.
Roth advanced to the final round, where the top five battled it out for the title. Ultimately, he came up just shy of an overall top finish. Still, he had joined the elite members of his class.
As Roth put it after the competition wrapped up, “It was competitive the day we stepped in the door. You’re talking about the best of the 50 states coming together here. There’s such good quality drivers coming from all the operating companies out here, that are sending their best, and the states that are sending their best.”
Roth competes in the 3-axle class at the 2018 National Truck Driving Championships in Columbus, Ohio. (John Sommers II for Transport Topics)
Roth is fond of the annual skills tournament, which he said helps form a family bond with fellow truckers. They share a commitment to safety and proudly represent their companies and states with distinction. Several NTDC competitors are veterans.
“Just to come up and compete against a lot of grand champions. That’s just a privilege and honor to be here,” Roth said. “To even make it this far takes a lot of focus and concentration.”
A FedEx driver for more than two decades based in Missouri, for Roth the industry is an ideal fit for fellow servicemen and women: “There’s a lot of military out there that are in the trucking industry, and quite frankly, companies like FedEx are just like the military. That’s probably why you see so many guys go to companies like that, because military is a family and you get that same sense going to a company like FedEx.”
When he’s not operating a commercial vehicle, Roth makes time to educate children at schools focusing on veterans’ contributions to the nation’s fabric.
“Anytime I see a veteran, I make sure that I go up and shake their hand, especially our Vietnam [War] veterans,” Roth said when we caught up with him Nov. 5, ahead of Veterans Day. He emphasized the major contributions military leaders, such as President Dwight Eisenhower, had with regard to freight connectivity. (Eisenhower established the Interstate Highway System to facilitate connectivity via a network of roadways.)
Large aspects of the trucking industry help create a sense of family for veterans: “The military guys do pretty much the very same job. And that’s why a lot of those guys, they feel comfortable when they’re able to get in with a trucking company, and do relatively the same job that they did in the military.”
“They were happy to serve their country doing what they did in the military. Now they’re able to carry that on, working for the various companies we have out here. And a lot of these companies are gainfully looking for those veterans,” Roth added.
He already is training to qualify for next year’s NTDC, which will be held in Pittsburgh.
“It takes everybody working together, just as the trucking industry,” Roth said about NTDC. “We are all a brotherhood there.”
THE WEEK AHEAD: (All times EST)
Nov. 13, 7 p.m.: The Atlantic hosts a discussion about the midterm elections with Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Goldberg.
Holmes Norton
Nov. 13, 7 p.m.: Highways and Transit Subcommittee ranking member Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) hosts a meeting about vibration concerns stemming from freight trains traveling through the city’s Virginia Avenue Tunnel.
Nov. 14, 9 a.m.: The National Transportation Safety Board has scheduled a hearing on the April 17, 2018, CFM International engine failure on Southwest Airlines Flight 1380.
Nov. 14, 11 a.m.: Airlines for America releases its “U.S. Airline Industry Thanksgiving Forecast and year-to-Date 2018 Review.”
Nov. 14, 12 p.m.: The Heritage Foundation hosts a book discussion, “The Once and Future Worker: A Vision for the Renewal of Work in America,” with author Oren Cass.
Nov. 14, 3:30 p.m.: The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research hosts a panel discussion titled, “How Strong is the Conservative Case for a Carbon Tax?” Douglas Holtz-Eakin, president of American Action Forum, is among the speakers.
Powell
Nov. 14, 6 p.m.: Federal Reserve Board Chairman Jerome Powell is scheduled to deliver remarks at the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas.
Nov. 15, 9:30 a.m.: Georgetown University hosts the Rural Capital Forum on “Private Investment Driving Rural Prosperity.” Speakers will include former Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.
Nov. 15, 6:30 p.m.: The National Press Club hosts Marvin Kalb for a book discussion, “Enemy of the People: Trump’s War on the Press, the new McCarthyism, and the Threat to American Democracy.”
Nov. 16, 8:30 a.m.: The Project on Government Oversight hosts its 2018 Oversight Summit, featuring former Sen. Carl Levin (D-Mich.).
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:
HQ2: Amazon.com Inc. will build new offices in New York City and Arlington, Va., ending months of jockeying among potential locations across the country vying for a $5 billion investment that promises 50,000 high-paying jobs over almost two decades. https://www.ttnews.com/articles/amazon-selects-washington-new-york-metro-areas-coveted-hq2-sites
‘OUTLIER’: A decision last month by a federal judge in Arkansas that truck drivers are entitled to compensation for time in the sleeper berth was preceded by two federal cases that resulted in legal rulings more favorable for carriers, including one that was affirmed by an appeals court. https://www.ttnews.com/articles/arkansas-sleeper-berth-case-outlier-attorneys-say
WHAT WE’RE READING:
Live every week as if it were “Infrastructure Week.”
BUZZ:
Freight stakeholders tell Transport Topics they are expecting the White House to shift its focus from immigration to infrastructure over the next few weeks.
FAVORITE QUOTE:
The president can talk to anybody he wants, without labels or insults or, you know, other things that I don’t even want to go into.
White House Economic Adviser Larry Kudlow, speaking to reporters Nov. 13.
FAVORITE VIDEO:
Former Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood can’t stop, won’t stop preaching the infrastructure funding gospels.
FAVORITE TWEET:
“Baltimore Nancy”
Pelosi has shifted into "Baltimore Nancy" mode as she seeks out Speaker votes, says one former Dem lawmaker: https://t.co/Ldo07i0AcE — Melanie Zanona (@MZanona) November 13, 2018
Thanks for reading Capitol Agenda. We publish weekly when Congress is in session. E-mail emulero@ttnews.com with tips. Follow us @eugenemulero and @transporttopics.
