Lawyers for the federal government briefly published internal correspondence on Wednesday evening detailing a laundry list of flaws in the U.S. Department of Transportation’s legal strategy to shut down the MTA’s congestion pricing tolls.
The document, dated April 11, was mistakenly posted on the docket of the MTA’s federal lawsuit challenging U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy’s effort to kill the tolls by revoking federal approval. The internal 11-page letter, sent from attorneys in the Southern District of New York to a lawyer for the federal transportation department, was taken down less than an hour after it was erroneously put online. By Thursday afternoon, the attorneys were taken off the case while a transportation department spokesperson speculated they published the document as an act of sabatoge.
It marked a new, bizarre wrinkle in the legal back-and-forth between New York state and the Trump administration over the future of the Manhattan tolls — and sparked yet another round of recrimination within President Donald Trump’s justice department.
Three assistant U.S. attorneys wrote in the internal letter that Duffy’s current argument to shut down the tolls isn’t likely to hold up in court. The program was approved under former President Joe Biden through a U.S. DOT pilot program – the Value Pricing Pilot Program – that allows local governments to impose tolls on federally funded roads. Duffy has argued he has the authority to rescind that approval, but the government attorneys were skeptical.
“It is unlikely that Judge [Lewis] Liman or further courts of review will accept the argument that [congestion pricing] was not a statutorily authorized ‘value pricing’ pilot” by the federal government, the letter states. “We have been unable to identify a compelling legal argument to support this position."
the attorneys were taken off the case while a transportation department spokesperson speculated they published the document as an act of sabatoge.
The GOP, to maintain consistency, must now go after Pete Hegseth for his leak of secret government war plans as Pete’s leak was “an act of sabotage”.
This not-stop drama and incompetence bullshit is just so damn tiring. It really makes you appreciate even more how Democratic administrations just Get Shit Done™ compared to their fumbling Republican counterparts.
Holy hell but do I miss government just working.
It really makes you appreciate even more how Democratic administrations just Get Shit Done™ compared to their fumbling Republican counterparts.
They Get Shit Done™ by not getting shit done. Republicans are obviously terrible, but let’s not forget that America is in this position because of Democratic incompetence.
That’s what they want, flood the zone, so nobody knows what’s actually true, we are all tired. Don’t look away, they want apathy, not resistance.
I wonder if this was done by ‘accident’ by one of the attorneys who had doubts about their legal strategy after they knew they were being removed from the case.
But…states rights?
The whole thing is tied to allowing a municipality to impose tolls on federally funded roads.
I assume the problem is that they can’t put the toll cameras on every exit so they do it at the bridges (which are federally funded?). I guess if I was NYC I’d just figure out a way to put the cameras on my own goddamn streets and then I don’t need the Fed’s permission.
And, from what I’m reading, “the people” love it…
Guess that’s reason enough alone for Mafia Don Mangolini to kill it. 🙄 🤡 🖕
Oh for real. It’s great for pedestrians. The vast majority prefers it.
What’s wrong, is Trump too poor to afford the toll? Just think of it like a tariff!
This is hilarious, thank you. Only the best for Felon Drink Bleach, Couch Guyliner, and Sieg Heiling Space Karen.
This administration’s ineptitude has really been handing out the wins lately.
