In the wake of the East Palestine, Ohio derailment, Congress rushed to respond—but instead of investigating the root causes, lawmakers reached for more regulation. In a surprising twist, some Republicans joined Democrats in pushing a bill loaded with mandates that catered more to union demands than to actual rail safety. Now, as Charles Sauer explains in his latest RealClearPolicy article, new Republican leadership in Washington is shifting the conversation back toward sanity—prioritizing innovation, efficiency, and real safety over political theater and regulatory bloat.
“Last Congress was the wild west in Washington, DC, and this year doesn’t seem to be much different. With everything moving at the speed of a meme coin, sometimes it is important to slow things down like a scenic train ride and reflect on all of the changes. For instance, one issue that has gotten a bit lost in the DOGE frenzy is that a group of Republicans actually supported adding regulations to the rail industry last Congress.
Although it was President Carter, a Democrat, that spent an extraordinary amount of effort deregulating the rail industry, over the last two decades the realm of burdensome regulations has largely been the left’s. However, the recent demand for populism, for better or worse, has blurred those lines, as a key group of Republicans began calling for more regulations on trains after the East Palestine, Ohio incident.
In some ways it made sense for politicians to react to an incident that affected their constituents, but instead of searching for answers, they picked up the regulatory hammer and went after one of the most regulated and longest regulated industries in the world. Fortunately, there was some pushback, as well as calls for the Senate to do what it does best and let the issue cool down before passing a bureaucratic nightmare that would have made rail more expensive, shipping more cumbersome, and possibly even the roads we drive on more dangerous.
Now, with Republicans in control of the White House and both chambers of Congress in 2025, it appears that the future of rail “safety” legislation has thankfully taken a back seat. Key Republican leaders, including Senate Majority Leader John Thune and Commerce Committee Chair Ted Cruz, have been vocal opponents of last Congress’ legislation, which they argue is laden with provisions that go far beyond safety and cater to organized labor’s agenda.
Additionally, Democratic Senators Sherrod Brown and Bob Casey, two prominent advocates for the Rail Safety Act, lost their reelection bids. And, Marco Rubio and JD Vance became Secretary Rubio and Vice President Vance, removing two Republican supporters of the legislation from their Senate seats. The departure of these four leaves a leadership void among proponents of the bill. While Vance could potentially influence the issue from his new role, the combined opposition from Thune and Cruz makes significant changes to the legislation almost certain.”
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