Commentary: Big Tent Ideas

JAMES CARTER: Railway Safety Act Betrays America First Agenda

Amtrak train on the tracks.

Donald Trump won the presidency by promising to drain the swamp, restore American greatness, and put working families first. Trump meant it. Voters believed it. So why are some Republicans in Washington determined to prove them wrong?

Look no further than the so-called Railway Safety Act.

After the February 2023 East Palestine derailment, the pressure to act was understandable. Tragedies demand responses. The images from that community were heartbreaking, and the anger that followed was legitimate.

But the legislation circulating in Washington goes well beyond what caused that accident. It layers on federal mandates — rigid crew requirements, outdated inspection rules, and operational restrictions designed for a different era of railroading — that have nothing to do with preventing the next East Palestine and everything to do with handing Washington bureaucrats control over an industry that has thrived precisely because Washington got out of the way nearly 50 years ago.

That’s not safety policy. That’s the swamp doing what the swamp does.

Freight rail is one of the great American success stories. Railroads invest roughly $23 billion annually into their own networks. No taxpayer bailouts. No federal subsidies. No requests for help. Just results.

Last year was the safest year on record for the U.S. freight rail industry by several measures, including derailment rates and employee injuries. Hazmat accident rates are down 80 percent since 2005. More than 99.99 percent of all hazmat moved by rail reaches its destination without a release caused by a train accident.

The safety record has been improving for decades, driven by private investment and American ingenuity, not Washington mandates. That progress deserves to be accelerated, not legislated away.

The National Transportation Safety Board found “insufficient evidence” that a more thorough inspection would have caught what caused the East Palestine derailment. The Railway Safety Act’s central premise is built on a foundation the government’s own investigators couldn’t support.

Private investment has also made rail dramatically cheaper. Average rail rates measured by inflation-adjusted revenue per ton-mile were 44 percent lower in 2024 than in 1981. Lower transportation costs keep American manufacturers competitive, American farmers profitable, and American consumers paying less at the checkout line.

That’s the America First economy in action.

The Railway Safety Act would mandate yesterday’s solutions onto tomorrow’s technology. It would freeze innovation in place and drive up costs across supply chains. Freight rail moves roughly 40 percent of long-distance cargo in this country. When rail costs go up, everything costs more: groceries, fuel, building materials, manufactured goods. Working families end up paying the price.

Worse, higher rail costs would push some shippers to trucks instead, putting more freight on highways and increasing the probability of accidents overall. A bill sold as a safety measure would make freight less safe.

An administration that ran on fighting inflation and restoring American greatness should think hard before signing legislation that makes life more expensive for the people who voted for it.

That is a self-inflicted wound. Working families deserve better.

Real American strength looks different. It looks like American companies investing their own capital, deploying their own technology, and winning in the marketplace without Washington second-guessing every decision. That’s the model that turned American freight rail into the most efficient private rail network on earth. It’s also the model the America First agenda was built to protect. Not undermine.

The 2026 midterms are closer than they look. Working people who felt ignored by Washington embraced the Republican Party. They will notice if the agenda they voted for starts looking like the same old Washington they rejected. Policies that raise costs, expand federal micromanagement, and hand Democrats a ready-made attack line are a gift nobody asked for.

Trump made a promise to working families: drain the swamp, restore American greatness, and put them first. The Railway Safety Act does the opposite on every count. Voters believed that promise. Honor it.

James Carter served as Deputy Under Secretary for International Affairs at the U.S. Department of Labor (2006-07) and as Director of the America First Policy Institute’s Center for American Prosperity (2021-23).

The views and opinions expressed in this commentary are those of the author and do not reflect the official position of the Daily Caller News Foundation.

(Featured Image Media Credit: Mike Knell via Flickr)