President Barack Obama appears to be backing away from an election-season push for a second stimulus of $50 billion in transportation projects, according to transportation industry officials and congressional leaders who say the signs are unmistakable.

One clear signal: The president never mentioned his stimulus plan at a White House event Monday with governors, mayors and transportation leaders that was supposed to be dedicated to the $50 billion proposal. Instead, the president emphasized a longer-term effort to pass a $450 billion, six-year infrastructure plan.

“We’re all kind of scratching our heads,” said one transportation industry official. “What happened to the $50 billion?”

The confusion about the president’s transportation plans reflects the unsettled nature of the White House strategizing for a post-election lame duck session of Congress, and the president’s agenda in 2011. “There is no plan yet,” said a top aide to a Democratic congressional leader, who said the White House doesn’t seem interested in contingency planning.

On Labor Day weekend, Obama announced that he intended to take $50 billion from the larger bill to quickly jump-start more infrastructure spending, arguing Democrats and Republicans would get behind the plan.

But since then, the White House has shown no sign of moving any time soon with a plan to quickly enact $50 billion in infrastructure projects, either in the lame duck or early in 2011, according to industry officials and congressional aides.........read more