Here’s an idea, of which I was reminded of in the Brookings Institution’s “Export Nation” report: a National Infrastructure Bank. These days it seems the only way Congress is able to act is when it spins off its powers to another institution (re: the Independent Medicare Advisory Committee, or IMAC). Regardless, I would look forward to an infrastructure bank. Instead of re-appropriating funds every year, which could be discouraged in times like these, an infrastructure bank could be more nimble and light on its feet. This is a useful quality when one considers the vast demand for infrastructure investment.