A meeting of two transportation titans

Congressman Earl Blumenauer (L) and US DOT Secretary Ray LaHood had an informal chat before this morning’s opening plenary.

I’m well underway here at Day Two of the National Bike Summit. I’ll have recap of the exciting opening plenary this morning in a bit; but before the speeches began I happened upon a chance meeting between U.S. Department of Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and House Representative Earl Blumenauer.

Given both of these politicians’ work on transportation issues, you’d think they chat informally more often. But I don’t think that’s the case. While I stood a few feet away snapping photos, I couldn’t help but overhear bits of their conversation. It seemed to me like Blumenauer was doing a bit of lobbying.

Here are the snippets of what I heard Blumenauer say (and I think they say a lot):

“Thank you for your outspoken leadership.”

“The livability legacy of this administration.”

“This is a golden opportunity.”

BikePortland’s coverage of the 2012 National Bike Summit is brought to you Planet Bike.

While brief, I think this informal meeting speaks volumes about both men; and about the power of the National Bike Summit to bring people like them together.