Senator Murray Questions Secretary Duffy on Corporate-Paid Reality TV Road Trip as Americans Pay Sky-High Gas Prices

Duffy refuses to engage with basic questions from Murray on corporate-sponsored trip

Murray to Duffy: "Americans don't have corporate sponsors to pay for their gas."

***WATCH: Senator Murray's full questioning***

Washington, D.C. - Today-at a Senate Appropriations Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Subcommittee hearing on the FY27 budget request for the Department of Transportation (DOT)-U.S. Senator Patty Murray (D-WA), Vice Chair of the Senate Appropriations Committee, pressed Duffy on how President Trump's request would lead to massive cuts to infrastructure funding-and grilled Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on his "Great American Road Trip," which was paid for by the same corporate sponsors he is tasked with regulating.

[INTERSTATE BRIDGE REPLACEMENT]

Senator Murray began by asking Secretary Duffy to commit to ensuring a key benchmark is met in order to keep the Interstate Bridge Replacement project connecting Washington state and Oregon on track.

MURRAY: Mr. Secretary, you know how important the Interstate Bridge Replacement project is across the Columbia River between Washington and Oregon. It's important for the entire West Coast. And it is really critical, as we have talked about many times, to keep this project moving and on track, and we know that delays mean higher costs.

So I wanted to ask you when you were in front of us today, will you commit to publishing the Record of Decision for the IBR project no later than July 1^st?

DUFFY: I don't know. I've got to take a look at that. But to the issue of the I-5, I have been wildly, aggressively involved in the process for the last year and a half. It's probably the project I know more about. Now, I think we have to work together, I think the initial estimate was $14 billion for that project. I think we have to work together to get to a number that's going to be-

MURRAY: That's true. But today I just wanted to ask about the Record of Decision, because delaying that will make it cost even more.

DUFFY: I will look and see on the timeline. I don't know that I can commit to you by July 1^st. Let me look and I can circle back with you on that timeline.

MURRAY: Thank you.

[FAST-APPROACHING INFRASTRUCTURE CLIFF]

Senator Murray then pressed Secretary Duffy on President Trump's plan to allow $37 billion in annual infrastructure funding provided through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law to lapse at the end of the year-while pushing to increase the defense budget by nearly half a trillion dollars more. The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law made a historic investment to upgrade America's infrastructure, but the law expires at the end of the fiscal year in September.

MURRAY: I want to ask you about the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, as you know it expires on September 30, and communities across the country are going to immediately lose access to about $37 billion in transportation funding, along with tens of billions in other critical funds in other agencies.

I heard Senator Gillibrand mention these facts earlier-but the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE) gives our infrastructure a C grade. Roads and aviation, D plus. Transit gets a D. And these grades tell us really that we have a lot more work to do. And if we don't, ASCE estimates that American families will pay $700 more a year, 344,000 jobs lost, and our economy is going to take a hit as well.

So, we have to address this infrastructure cliff in our FY27 funding bills-or our cities, our airports, our transit systems are not going to have the funding they need for vital projects in actually every one of our states. Meanwhile we have a budget from the president, and he is proposing a half a trillion dollars more for the war budget, but his budget proposal does virtually nothing to prevent a $37 billion cut to this transportation funding.

So, I'll just be blunt, is it the position of this administration that we should stop fixing our roads and bridges to fund a war abroad?

DUFFY: Senator, I appreciate the question. So first, when you look at the C rating and we should be A rated in America, I agree with you. You and I are on the same page.

MURRAY: No, I'm asking you about-

DUFFY: I will answer that question. I'm just talking about-

MURRAY: Well, I have limited time.

DUFFY: So, I've pulled out a lot of the green requirements that you all didn't put in the legislation, IIJA, and I pulled out a lot of the D.E.I. from the last administration to make us build faster and better.

MURRAY: I know what you've been doing. The budget proposes a flat funding for transportation, and it proposes a huge funding for war. So, for all of us looking at this budget, it is fewer bridges and more bombs. I've just got to say that as a committee we have to address this infrastructure cliff in our funding bills. We cannot let this funding expire and leave our communities [out to] dry. That's my point and I just wanted you to understand that.

DUFFY: I take your point. Could we be on the same page? You all do the advanced appropriations, and you are melding together the budget with the advanced appropriations.

MURRAY: Correct and that's what we've been doing for a number of years and all I'm saying is that there's going to be a huge cliff, and instead of giving us a budget that helps us address that cliff, we did not get one.

DUFFY: The last administration didn't give you a budget that included advanced appropriations, and I didn't either. So, we've actually increased the money in the base budget.

MURRAY: But because the cliff is this year, that is why it's critical.

DUFFY: If I came in and told you all what to do with advanced appropriations, you would be offended by that.

MURRAY: No but I am offended by a budget that comes in with [a half] trillion dollars more for war and no increases for infrastructure when we all know that in October there's going to be a huge funding cliff on transportation that was not addressed in the budget.

DUFFY: Which I have $114 billion, the biggest base budget in transportation ever submitted to Congress, but the advanced appropriations is not what I do, you all do the advanced appropriations.

MURRAY: And this is a problem we're all going to face.

[DUFFY'S "GREAT AMERICAN ROAD TRIP"]

Senator Murray grilled Secretary Duffy on his "Great American Road Trip" while Americans pay sky-high gas prices because of Trump's war in Iran-and on the vast ethical concerns his filming of the show poses.

MURRAY: But let me move on because I do want to address this issue. Over 39 million Americans are expected to hit the road for Memorial Day weekend. And you're encouraging Americans to spend the summer road tripping across the country.

But let me just ask you, how much did you rack up on gas during your Great American Road Trip? I understand that was paid for by groups and sponsors-is that correct?

DUFFY: A nonprofit funded the Great American Road Trip.

MURRAY: The nonprofit actually solicited funding from private organizations.

DUFFY: Yeah, I did not.

MURRAY: Ok, do you know how much gas?

DUFFY: No, I don't.

MURRAY: You don't.

DUFFY: But I know it's not as much as it was under Biden, which was $5 a gallon.

MURRAY: Holy cow. Okay so just listen. Americans don't have corporate sponsors to pay for their gas. And for families that are hitting the road this weekend, the national average gas price is now four dollars and fifty cents per gallon-that is more than 50% higher than before Trump's war in Iran, when gas was less than $3 a gallon.

So, I just want to make the point, families are seeing this at the gas pump, but they're also seeing it costing more for airline trips. The cost of a domestic flight is up 31% over last year! And they, by the way, are stuck paying ridiculous junk fees. Why? Because you decided to rip up some basic protections that gave people automatic refunds and hotels when their flights were delayed or cancelled.

DUFFY: Not true.

MURRAY: So, here's the problem. Here's how Americans see this, and who are talking to me: you've been recording a promo of yourself and not working to lower the costs. This show is incredibly out of touch with where Americans are. And I echo Senator Gillibrand's concerns that it really raises some serious ethics concerns about who you answer to because the people organizing your show solicited corporate sponsors and promised rewards at each level of funding.

DUFFY: Now, Senator, be honest, that's not true.

MURRAY: I'm looking at your [pitch deck soliciting corporate sponsorships for the trip], what you get for being a platinum-

DUFFY: That's not mine. There's a memo of understanding that says no one gets any benefit for anything.

MURRAY: I will ask you a question, maybe you can answer it. If I'm an airline executive and I paid $1 million for this Great American Road Trip, what would I get out of that?

DUFFY: From me? Nothing.

MURRAY: Well look, as I said, the deck that is out there says that if you give $1 million, you get six VIP invitations to receptions, you get to go to roundtables, you get to networking events.

DUFFY: If someone from the health care industry gives you $2 million, what do they get for it?

MURRAY: I do not oversee, I do not regulate.

DUFFY: You have jurisdiction.

MURRAY: I do not regulate.

DUFFY: You have jurisdiction.

MURRAY: I do not regulate-

DUFFY: $2 million, to put your face on TV, to buy steak dinners-

MURRAY: Mr. Secretary listen to my questions.

DUFFY: To go on vacations. That is what you do.

MURRAY: Mr. Secretary listen.

DUFFY: Welcome to MAGA! Welcome to drill baby drill! Are you going to drill?

MURRAY: Mr. Secretary! Please!

DUFFY: Do you want support lower gas prices? I welcome that. Let's drill, let's refine.

MURRAY: Madame Chair, I ask for my time back please so I can ask my questions.

DUFFY: Let's pipe fuel across the country. You have not been supportive of that.

MURRAY: Mr. Secretary, you obviously came here with a book of every one of us, so that instead of answering our questions, you could attack.

DUFFY: You haven't supported that. I am answering your question. You are asking about gas prices. You have done everything you have can to increase gas prices for Americans and make us buy EVs.

MURRAY: Madame Chair, can I have my time back?

DUFFY: Donald Trump is lowering the cost of energy, and you know that.

MURRAY: Mr. Secretary, this is my time. You are wasting my time-

DUFFY: You are wasting my time.

MURRAY: Responding with a book of claims that you have come at us.

DUFFY: Are you denying that you got $2 million from health care. I can go down the list here.

MURRAY: Mr. Secretary, that is not-Mr. Secretary it is my time! Madame Chair I am asking to be able to ask a question here.

DUFFY: Pfizer gave you $102,000. I'm just pointing out your record.

MURRAY: I do not need to be attacked by a secretary who is the witness at this table that is out of order.

DUFFY: What did they get for it? What did big pharma get-for the $1.1 million that big pharma gave you what did they get for it?

MURRAY: Mr. Secretary.

DUFFY: What did they get?

MURRAY: Mr. Secretary, seriously?

DUFFY: Seriously, I want to know. I think America wants to know. I got nothing from anybody.

MURRAY: I find it astonishing-

DUFFY: I do too.

MURRAY: That you are so angry at a question that I asked.

DUFFY: I'm surprised that you are, Senator.

MURRAY: I'm sitting here trying to ask a question, I am being interrupted rudely by a secretary who is here.

DUFFY: About big pharma?

MURRAY: Mr. Secretary, let me just say this. Toyota, United Airlines, Shell, Boeing, Royal Caribbean, and Enterprise all sponsored your show. It is literally your job to make sure each of those companies are playing by the rules.

DUFFY: Can I answer the question?

MURRAY: So, Toyota is sponsoring a show starring you and it is your department Mr. Secretary that decides-

DUFFY: Do you hate America? Don't you want to celebrate America? Let's celebrate this country.

MURRAY: Mr. Secretary it is your department that decides whether Toyota's next recall is voluntary or mandatory. Certainly, you can understand-

DUFFY: No one gets anything from me.

MURRAY: You're not even going to acknowledge that this is a bad look in America.

DUFFY: No one gets anything. It's a bad look that you take millions of dollars.

MURRAY: Madame Chair I have gone over my time. I find your answers out of touch and irresponsible.

DUFFY: There is no benefit that anyone gets. If I'm going to celebrate America 250. You gave me the ability to partner with America 250 and I did. You told me, this body said to celebrate tourism and travel and that's what I'm doing. All I'm saying is: America, go see your country.

MURRAY: Mr. Secretary you are really good at talking-

CHAIR HYDE-SMITH: We are going to go to Senator Britt.

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