91��Ƶ

Pence (right) speaks at the debate with Harris. (Morry Gash/AP Photo/Bloomberg News)

[Stay on top of transportation news: .]

A multitrillion-dollar proposal from Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden aimed at reconditioning the country’s buildings, mobility grids and energy sectors would suffocate an economy poised to rebound in the coming months, Vice President Mike Pence argued in an Oct. 7 debate with Sen. Kamala Harris. Harris is Biden’s running mate and Pence’s rival in the upcoming presidential election.

In taking aim at the former vice president’s plan, Pence compared the proposal to a recent Democratic policy platform known as the Green New Deal, which opponents claim would lead to misguided use of funds over several years. Pence noted that Harris was a backer of the legislation.

“You were one of the original co-sponsors of it in the United States Senate,” he said to his political opponent on the debate stage, and charged that the Biden and Harris infrastructure plan — which some say mirrors the Green New Deal — would, “bury our economy under a $2 trillion Green New Deal.”

·

What are industry executives doing to help bring more women into the fold, not only as drivers, but in leadership roles?�� Host Michael Freeze talks with Ellen Voie��of Women In Trucking��and Debora Babin Katz��of TrucBrush Corp. Hear a snippet, above, and get the full program by going to .

Harris (D-Calif.) defended Biden’s climate change plan, which would fund wide-ranging updates of transportation and construction sectors by undoing significant parts of the Trump-era tax cuts. She said the Biden plan would invest in infrastructure programs that would propel growth.

“It’s about upgrading our roads and bridges, but also investing in clean energy and renewable energy,” Harris said. “Joe is going to invest that money in what we need to do around innovation.”

Biden also has promoted the use of electric vehicles.

Earlier this year, the Trump White House suggested the consideration of a 10-year, $810 billion highway-centric policy plan along with a $190 billion proposal for water improvement projects and rural broadband access. President Donald Trump also endorsed a multi-year surface transportation bill sponsored by Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.). Prior to that, a Republican-led Congress did not legislate on a private sector-centric infrastructure plan championed by Trump’s team.

Want more news? Listen to today's daily briefing:

��