Ted Cruz says he's investigating California's High-Speed Rail; this is what he's done
The comments were made by Cruz on social media Tuesday in response to President Donald Trump's announcement that he would be launching his own investigation into the project.
What Trump's investigation would entail remains to be seen, but the president said earlier this week that tech billionaire Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency would not be leading the effort.
As for the extent of Cruz's investigation so far, CAHSR officials said, he has sent a letter.
The letter, which was sent May 29, 2024, was provided to KTLA upon request to the California High-Speed Rail Authority. It was also shared on the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation website.
Addressed to former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, Cruz, acting in the capacity as ranking member of the Committee, questioned why the Biden Administration continued to grant the project federal funding, despite questions about its viability.
'DOT itself states that its project review process must 'help ensure that taxpayers are getting the highest value for every dollar invested,'' the letter reads. 'It is unclear if DOT complied with its own guidance to safeguard taxpayer dollars when selecting [CAHSR] for such a large amount of grant funding.'
Plan to connect CA's 2 high-speed rail projects moves forward
Cruz, as well as the letter's co-author, Missouri Rep. Sam Graves, also questioned whether other 'effective and worthy projects' may have lost out on grant funding that was ultimately awarded to the California project.
The letter concludes with a request for Buttigieg to appear for an in-person briefing with the Committee to provide justification for awarding the project the federal funds and discuss, among other things, how the Department of Transportation evaluated the challenges facing the project, and the existing funding gap and projected ridership for the 'initial operating segment' between Merced and Bakersfield.
The Department of Transportation was also requested to provide documents related to the CAHSR grant application process.
On Thursday, CAHSR officials confirmed that the requested meeting had been scheduled to take place in October 2024 but was canceled. It was never rescheduled.
That, officials said, is the extent of the Authority's communication with Cruz.
KTLA reached out to Cruz's office regarding the canceled meeting and whether anything else of material in his self-described investigation has happened since then. That request was not returned prior to the publishing of this story.
It's unclear if Cruz plans to take additional steps to audit the California High-Speed Rail in the future, or if his comments were, as suggested by an industry professional who spoke to KTLA off the record, an act of political theater.
What's the difference between CA's 2 high-speed rail projects?
In the wake of Trump's comments regarding his own investigation into what he referred to as 'the worst managed project' he'd ever seen, the California High-Speed Rail Authority has pushed back on the notion that the project has little to show for what has been spent so far.
Dozens of large structures in the Central Valley have been completed or are under currently construction, utility lines have been relocated, vast swaths of land have been purchased to accommodate the train's route and the entire system segment from San Francisco to Los Angeles has obtained environmental clearance. The Authority is also in the process of acquiring its first sets of high-speed trains.
Officials said earlier this week that, so far, about $13 billion has been spent on the project so far, with $10.5 billion paid for exclusively by the State of California. 'Those expenditures have created over $22 billion in economic impact,' they said.
Still, the cost of completing the nation's first true high-speed electric train system in a timely manner remains front of mind for the California High-Speed Rail Authority.
Last week, new CEO Ian Choudri spoke at an industry forum to discuss the project, calling it not just a transportation project but a 'catalyst for economic growth and prosperity in the regions that are being connected.'
Millions of California drivers could have vehicles not safe for the road
As the Authority's new CEO, Choudri says he's overseen a reorganization that he hopes will streamline operations and improve efficiency and, ideally, acquire future funding on a consistent basis, not 'stop-and-go' funding like in years past.
He said the Authority was committed to ensuring the system gets completed, now hoping it can be delivered 'sooner, faster.'
'We want to make sure it's clear that we are committed to connect the Bay Area to Los Angeles; that is the goal,' Choudri said. 'And we are not moving away from that while working to deliver useful segments that we are doing right now in the Central Valley to the public at a lower cost and on a faster timeline.'
To track current construction progress on the California High-Speed Rail yourself, officials say you can visit BuildHSR.com.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Post-2024, Democrats across the country — but especially in Texas — have done plenty of soul-searching about their struggles with Latino voters, including diagnosing why Trump appealed to them, particularly in South Texas. Allred has his own theory. 'I think they were promised in the last election that the candidates they voted for were going to [lower costs], but they have done the opposite,' he said, referencing Republicans' passage of a mega-bill that is projected to raise energy costs and Trump's tariff policy. 'It's going to be a very expensive Christmas for working people, and I think that's what we have to speak more to, both for Hispanic and Latino voters, but also just for Texas in general.' Allred said he wants to be more accessible to voters across the state. Through his rallies and town halls, he has already been spending more time on the road in Texas, from Abilene to Houston to McAllen. The Democratic political class — including his critics — have noticed. 'He's a much better speaker — I noticed that immediately,' said a Democratic operative who works on races in Texas and thought Allred's team was overly cautious in 2024. 'He's significantly more energetic in his presentation. I think what he's saying is much more interesting.' He sees particular opportunity in improving urban turnout. Voter turnout was lower in 2024 than in 2020, particularly in the state's urban centers. In Texas' four big blue counties — Harris, Bexar, Dallas and Travis — turnout was about 50% in 2024, compared to over 60%in 2020. Democrats always face an uphill battle of convincing their voters to turn out in a reliably red state, but Allred hopes to connect with urban voters through showing up more often. 'They're working harder for less, and then an election comes up, and it's almost secondary,' Allred said. 'I want to speak to that, but also [make sure] they know my story, that I understand what they're going through, that I have plans that I know that we can put in place to lower their costs from health care to child care to housing.' He's funneling much of his message through the lens of corruption, between the economy and redistricting, calling both rigged systems that reward the wealthy. Though Allred has routinely attached both 'Paxton and Cornyn' in his anti-corruption appeals, Paxton, who has faced ethical and legal troubles, would be an easier target. A competitive primary? Before Allred announced his re-election, he met with Talarico, O'Rourke and San Antonio Rep. Joaquin Castro to discuss their 2026 ambitions. All interested in the Senate, the hope was that they could find a way to efficiently use all of their talents. But Allred announced a campaign shortly after, and with the Senate a far more attractive option than taking on Gov. Greg Abbott or other state-level positions, none of the other two have announced a national move yet. Talarico has openly pondered a Senate bid, including inquiring with stations about ad rates. Allred said the four have not had any further coordination, though he has had some informal conversations. The Senate logjam is a corollary of Texas Democrats' statewide failures. Governors, senior senators or other statewide elected officials are often unofficial statewide party leaders, who can solve disputes before they reach the level of a primary. But with no obvious party leader in Texas, no one has the clout to issue top-down directives, including which statewide races to assign their most talented candidates. Matt Angle, a longtime Texas Democratic operative and director of the Lone Star Project, said Allred brings a lot of proven ability to the race and was a victim of Democrats' national collapse last cycle. 'He's not somebody who's a fresh face or somebody who's going to spout curse words every tenth word,' Angle said. 'But he's somebody who has proven that he can beat a Republican. He's somebody that's proven that he can get money. He's somebody that's proven that he can run ahead of a national ticket by three or four percentage points.' But Angle also said that Talarico, who has an enormous online presence and has become the face of the quorum break among national media, brings a vibrancy that voters like. 'Democrats like candidates that make their pulse race,' he said. 'James Talarico is an extraordinarily talented and very capable guy. If he runs for Senate, he'll be a serious candidate.' Relative to Talarico, Allred also comes to the race with higher name recognition — having just run statewide — and a serious fundraising operation that brought in over $80 million last cycle. But not all consultants were as bullish on Allred. The Democratic operative who works on races in Texas said Allred was encouraged to lay low too often in 2024. The operative has been encouraged by Allred's travel schedule and messaging thus far, but worried that he is not generating enough attention for voters to notice. 'He's done a good job so far this cycle showing that there are other sides to him, but no one's seeing them,' the operative said. 'The press isn't super excited to cover him, and then the voters sort of think of him as this guy who was just sort of calm and works on both sides of the aisle — quiet. It's hard to get a second chance sometimes.' Another Democratic consultant in the state said that progressives are not enthused about Allred. The operative said Allred was late to the redistricting news cycle — he did not testify at any of the Legislature's field hearings until the map was released and he spoke in Austin — and is too scripted in his overall presentation. 'People want to see a fighter,' the operative said. 'You just can't be seen otherwise as middle of the road…I think that whole middle thing just does not play as well in this midterm.' Shape the future of Texas at the 15th annual , happening Nov. 13–15 in downtown Austin! We bring together Texas' most inspiring thinkers, leaders and innovators to discuss the issues that matter to you. Get tickets now and join us this November. TribFest 2025 is presented by JPMorganChase.
