Transportation need not be a partisan issue, but Democrats are steering it that way as they reflexively attack Gov. Rick Scott's rejection of federal stimulus dollars for a controversial high-speed rail line.

Progress Florida, a "progressive" but nominally nonpartisan group, declared that Scott's decision was driven by a desire "to make President Obama look bad."

Florida Democrats, including U.S. Rep. Corrine Brown and Sen. Bill Nelson, expressed predictably partisan "outrage" and shock that the governor pulled the plug on the nascent venture.

Nelson went on to open a legal can of worms by announcing that he and U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood have lawyers "researching" the idea of ramming the train through Florida without the state's approval.

Democrats, you might recall, became similarly unhinged when New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie halted funding of an $8.7 billion trans-Hudson rail tunnel.

Both Republican governors saw gaping budget deficits ahead; each took the responsible course to safeguard their state's taxpayers.

Nevertheless, the narrative scripted by Democrats and recited by credulous media outlets paints Scott as a derelict demagogue who is "killing jobs" by  passing up $2.4 billion in found money.

"I’m appalled by Governor Scott’s shortsighted thinking and his decision to choose politics and ideology over job creation for Florida," intoned Democratic state Rep. Hazelle Rogers of Lauderdale Lakes.

In fact, Scott said he was saving money and marshaling resources for bona fide economic-development ventures that will generate sustainable employment opportunities.

Before Scott's opponents attacked his decision as ill-informed or, worse, a political stunt, the governor conducted a detailed examination of cost and ridership studies from across the country.

His analysis uncovered consistent cost overruns and overly rosy revenue projections, based on chronically low usage. Scoffing at the prediction of 3 million riders on the Tampa-Orlando train, the governor said Wednesday:

"Keep in mind that Amtrak’s Acela (high-speed) train in Washington, D.C., Boston, Philadelphia, New York and Baltimore only had 3.2 million riders in 2010. That market’s population is eight times the size of the Tampa/Orlando market."

These are the types of studies that high-speed rail enthusiasts never bothered to read or simply gloss over because they contain inconvenient truths.

"If Republicans are serious about cutting spending, rail is an easy one because it benefits very few people," said Sharon Calvert, leader of the Hillsborough County group, No Tax for Tracks.

Yet a few key Republicans continue to carry water for the Obama administration.


PLAYING ALONG AT TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE

U.S. Rep. John Mica, who chairs the House Transportation Committee, represents a swath of east Central Florida. He also represents the transportation industry, receiving more than $100,000 in contributions from railroad companies, including CSX Corp., during the past four years.

So Mica's reaction to Scott's action was predictable. He called it "a huge setback for the state of Florida."

The log-rolling nature of public-works projects is endemic to the Transportation Committee. Republicans of the RINO variety play along with Democrats to keep the money flowing.

But, in case Mica hasn't heard, voters are starting to rebel at these costly old games. The shellacking that Obama's party took in November wasn't so much a victory for Republicans as it was a repudiation of overspending by stimulus-bingeing politicians.

Mica has tried to have it both ways. Before blasting Scott's decision, the veteran congressman likened the president's call for $53 billion in additional high-speed rail projects to investing with ponzi schemer Bernie Madoff.