The bullet train isn’t a waste of funds — the construction was just grossly mismanaged. A French or Chinese consortium could have done it at 1/4 the cost, but no, we have to “buy American.”

I suspect that’s the idea — have the corrupt US contractors build it Merced to Bakersfield, and have a foreign company with actual experience build from Bakersfield to LA. Tracks already exist from Oakland to Merced. With lighter off-the-shelf European trains now being allowed by Federal law, this section could be electrified and used for the northern section to SF, with the “last mile” being along the Bay Bridge.