It has been The Project That Will Not Die. What began as a California statewide voter referendum in 2008 to approve initial funding for a high-speed rail system between San Francisco and Los Angeles has become a financial black hole with no railroad to show for it.

Despite statements from Gov. Gavin Newsom that the system is fine, the Trump administration has announced it was pulling $4 billion from the project. In typical Donald Trump fashion, the president, on Truth Social, called it a “train to nowhere,” adding: “The Railroad we were promised still does not exist, and never will. This project was Severely Overpriced, Overregulated, and NEVER DELIVERED.”

Not to be outdone, California Gov. Gavin Newsom ordered the state to sue for the money, claiming that the Trump administration was breaking a legal contract. No doubt, a friendly federal judge will order the money reinstated, but one doubts that after appeals, the California High Speed Rail Authority will win.

Despite rhetoric to the contrary, The Donald is right on this one. From the project’s 2008 start to the present time, the idea of the state building a train that could go from San Francisco to LA in 2 hours and 40 minutes has never been a possibility, thanks to California’s unforgiving geography. Furthermore, even if California authorities were able to find even $100 billion more for this project, it could not be built as planned, and certainly not as promised. ...

In the annals of boondoggery, it is doubtful that any politician—even those that are especially venal and corrupt—ever sets out to create a boondoggle. While “boondoggle” is a word that probably is used too often (or maybe not often enough, if one really takes a hard look at government projects), it would seem that the word should have been created for the California bullet train project. The potential for financial losses is staggering, even by the high standards of financial chicanery that governments at all levels have been executing in the 21st century. ...

Despite the “finish it at all costs” rhetoric coming from Sacramento and the Democrats in California’s Congressional delegation, the bullet train project will never be finished in its entirety, but California’s Democrats will do everything they can to finish the present 171-mile project. If not, every Republican running for office in the state will show photos of unfinished bridges and viaducts and point out that California taxpayers will be paying for money borrowed through the bond issues into perpetuity.

If this stretch of the railroad is finished, it will probably be the least ridden high-speed line in the world and will be the subject of jokes. However, one can imagine that whoever is in the governor’s seat will declare victory, not just because the line is finished, but also because they will have spent billions of dollars in the process, enriching contractors, unions, and anyone else standing under the money spigot.

At the end of the classic 1935 movie “Little Caesar,” Rico the gangster (played by the incomparable Edward G. Robinson) is gunned down by Police Sergeant Flaherty, his last words being, “Mother O’ Mercy, is this the end of Rico?” One can only hope that Trump has played the role of Flaherty in putting the California Bullet Train out of its misery.

California politicians have shown themselves capable of mind-bending foolishness, but nothing in the history of foolishness in this state comes close to this railroad. If nothing else, however, perhaps the steel and concrete that makes up the “bullet train” can stand as a warning to future governors and presidents that economic laws exist for a reason, and that those that bend or break them will have to deal with the consequences.