During a Senate Transportation Committee hearing, Sen. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) confronted President Trump's nominee to be Federal Aviation Administration Administrator Bryan Bedford, about his past comments insulting Milwaukee: "I don't care how cheap you make it, you don't go there unless you have to."
00:00Senator Baldwin, and I turn the gavel to Senator Sullivan.
00:04Thank you, Senator Blackburn.
00:07I am going to yield a few seconds to Senator Moreno to correct the record.
00:14Sure, no, not to correct the record.
00:15I just wanted to, Senator Lujan brought up an issue about the families not being able to meet with Secretary Duffy.
00:22So I took the opportunity to step outside and called the Secretary.
00:26He gave me his chief's cell phone number.
00:28So for the families, he's expecting your call.
00:32If you could call him at your convenience, and the Secretary is more than happy to meet with you.
00:37So I'll hand this to whoever the family representative is so that we can get that meeting scheduled.
00:43And he obviously is wanting to do that as quickly as possible.
00:50Mr. Bedford, thank you for being here today.
00:52Thank you for the opportunity to meet with you ahead of this hearing to learn more about your priorities for the FAA.
01:00As the senator representing Wisconsin on this committee, I would be remiss if I didn't mention how disheartened I was to read about some of your past comments about Milwaukee.
01:12It has been reported that you told a group of investors that, quote, I don't care how cheap you make it, you don't go there unless you have to.
01:22Mr. Bedford, couldn't be more wrong on that account.
01:26And if confirmed, I invite you to Milwaukee to come see for yourself all that the city and the state of Wisconsin has to offer.
01:34One of the FAA's most successful partnerships is the contract tower program.
01:44265 smaller airports participate in this important air traffic safety program, including nine in my state of Wisconsin.
01:55These towers support rural air service and flight schools across the country, as well as DOD flight training operations and military readiness.
02:05What assurances can you give us today that contract towers will be a high priority for you if you're confirmed?
02:12Well, thank you for the question, Senator Baldwin, and thank you for the courtesy of the time in your office.
02:17I'm going to push back strongly on that quote.
02:20I don't know where that came from because I've got two Marquette graduates back here that are going to be very unhappy if I let that stand in the record.
02:29I love Milwaukee.
02:30I've spent a lot of time in Milwaukee.
02:32You know, we tried to save Midwest Airlines in Milwaukee.
02:35It was a brutal, brutal competitive environment.
02:37And unfortunately, Milwaukee has lost a lot of direct service as a result of that.
02:42We used to have service to Omaha and Duluth and Eau Claire and Grand Rapids.
02:46That's how I got to Washington, D.C. as a member of the House.
02:49So, you know, I would love to see a resurgence of opportunity in Milwaukee.
02:54So I'm not sure that quote came from maybe I was drinking.
02:57I apologize.
02:59Contract towers.
03:00I utilize them frequently.
03:01You know, it's my own flight training.
03:03I'm flying in places like Anderson, Indiana, Muncie, Indiana, and they're all contract towers.
03:07So they when you think about the fact that we've got thousands and thousands of student pilots, they rely on these contract towers almost exclusively for their flight training.
03:16So they're a very vital component of the ecosystem here in the United States.
03:23Last Congress, I was proud to author provisions in the Federal Aviation Administration Authorization Act that strengthen protections for air travelers with disabilities, many of whom are our nation's veterans.
03:36The law includes provisions from my Air Carrier Access Amendments Act to ensure that airplanes are designed to accommodate people with disabilities and that airlines meet accessibility standards, including for individuals who use wheelchairs.
03:54Will you commit to enforcing these measures and to working with us to continue to improve passenger safety for all Americans, including those with disabilities?
04:05Thank you for the question, Senator Baldwin.
04:07If it's the law, of course, we'll enforce it.
04:10But I want to tell you that I think I may have shared with you in your office, and I certainly had this conversation with ranking member Duckworth.
04:18We've had firsthand family experience with mobility challenges when our daughter suffered a spinal cord stroke that rendered her a quadriplegic.
04:26So thankfully, by the grace of God, she's recovered about 85% of her mobility.
04:30But we absolutely understand.
04:32My wife, Maria, runs a foundation that helps people with mobility issues, providing them wheelchair-accessible vans, you know, home upgrades for handicap accessibility.
04:43I mean, so this is an issue near and dear to our hearts.
04:45I appreciate that.
04:47Last question, improving recruitment and retention in aviation workforce needs to be a top priority in the FAA, and pilots are a vital piece of that workforce.
05:00We talked about this yesterday.
05:02We discussed my Flight Education Access Act that I sponsor with.
05:09It's a bipartisan bill that Senator Sullivan is a co-sponsor of.
05:15It's aimed at increasing student loan limits for students in flight training programs to help make pilots' careers more accessible by addressing the high cost of flight education and training while maintaining our standards for safety.
05:32So, if confirmed, what strategies will you implement to increase the pipeline of qualified pilots?
05:39Well, thank you for the question.
05:41We absolutely have had workforce shortages.
05:44Pilots have been critical, but also maintenance technicians.
05:47So, there's a lot of work to do here to convince young people that these are viable careers, transformational careers where you don't have to spend, you know, time in college.
05:56So, absolutely.
05:58And, you know, we've worked together on granting issues and trying to, you know, get our military veterans an opportunity to come into these transformational careers.
06:06So, I would love to continue to work with you on that.
06:09I appreciate that.
06:09Next is Senator Sullivan.
06:12Thank you, Senator Baldwin.
06:14I think I'm chairing and I'm going to call on myself.
