DON’T WORRY, I’M SURE TRANSPORTATION SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG* WILL SORT IT OUT: Potential rail strike threatens to kneecap US economy ahead of midterms.

More than 9 in 10 railroad workers would vote to reject the PEB recommendations and go on strike, according to a recent survey from the organization.

Still, Kaminkow noted that workers could change their minds when faced with the prospect of years of back pay and the reality that Congress can take away their main source of leverage at any time.

Federal law gives Congress the power to block or delay a railroad strike. If workers were to walk out, lawmakers could vote to enact the PEB deal or appoint arbitrators to fast-track a new contract, among a range of other options.

The Association of American Railroads, which estimates that a national rail shutdown would cost the U.S. at least $2 billion a day, said that lawmakers should vote to implement the PEB recommendations in the event of a strike to “instantly reward employees and reduce economic uncertainty.”

Experts say that an extended walkout would devastate industries that rely on freight to transport grain, coal, diesel, steel and motor vehicle parts. Shipping containers would pile up at ports, severely congesting supply chains and sending prices soaring ahead of the holidays.

“The railroads are actually very critical to the nation’s economy, and also to security. There’s a lot of hazardous stuff that simply can’t go by road,” said Nicholas Little, director of railway education at Michigan State University’s Center for Railway Research and Education.

*Or perhaps he has more pressing matters to attend to: In Oakland, Pete Buttigieg vows to ‘reconnect’ communities razed by highways.