Uncle Floyd's Amtrak Show

Floyd Hall is one of the lucky 17 recess appointments the President Bush made yesterday. (via Kos)

Uncle Floyd's $300,000 in soft money contributions to the Bush Campaign have landed him a 5 year job on the AMTRAK reform board.  Many will remember Uncle Floyd from his days as CEO of the KMart that went Bankrupt.

In fairness, Uncle Floyd is Montclair State's favorite uncle, and he generally has done lots of good for the community. The appointment speaks more about the Bush Presidency than it does about Uncle Floyd.

However, when Uncle Floyd is placed together with co-appointees such as Halliburton head Robert Crandell, and railroad privatizer Louis Thompson, Amtrak's future is bleak at best.

Having such distinguished Republican free marketeers at the helm can mean REAL trouble for the already embattled Amtrak.

Come to think of it, our new Senator Menendez used to be quite the Defender of Amtrak, heck he even sat on the committee in charge of it. I wonder what he thinks of Bush's sneaky appointment of this fellow New Jerseyan?

Amtrak is a crucial part of the Northeast's economy. It needs real leadership to see it through the troubled times ahead, not Katrina-esque cronyism running it into the ground.