Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden earlier this month took an Amtrak train ride to campaign in key Rust Belt states — and Republicans are vowing to get to the bottom of it.
Republican members of the U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure on Wednesday sent a letter to Amtrak CEO William Flynn asking him for information on Biden's train trips, which they implied without evidence caused delays in the delivery of needed medical equipment during the novel coronavirus pandemic.
"We are concerned that the Biden campaign's use of Amtrak's charter train redirected Amtrak's scarce resources during a time of record losses, employee layoffs, and service cuts during the COVID-19 pandemic," the Republicans wrote. "We question whether the Biden campaign's use of Amtrak caused delays of freight trains at a time when supplies are crucial."
The Republicans then requested that Flynn provide the total cost to Amtrak of hosting the Biden campaign, and also "whether the Biden campaign's charter train delayed any Amtrak trains or disrupted any Amtrak services."
The GOP lawmakers also requested "a written response on how the Biden campaign charter train remained in compliance with Amtrak guidance and procedures on COVID-19."