The move last week was perceived as part of an ongoing feud between President Donald Trump and Illinois’ Democratic Governor, JB Pritzker. Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer, also a Democrat, has tended to be more conciliatory in her dealings with the president.
Pritzker’s office says funding for the next phase of the project, which is in Illinois, will allow that work to continue.
Joel Brammeier is with the Alliance for the Great Lakes. He says the politics surrounding the Trump administration’s action and where the project is managed is less important than the fact that the project is moving ahead.
“It’s really important just to get back to what are we trying to achieve here and let’s not, you know, throw up roadblocks that don’t need to be there.”
Congress is supposed to approve the next round of funding by the end of next year. Once completed, the barrier system is supposed to keep invasive carp from escaping from the Mississippi River water system into Lake Michigan.
