"HART tells the feds it thinks it can finish the project for $9 billion."
"it thinks" are the operative words. Who thinks? Hart is not a person.
Why would we believe that this time the "estimate" will be correct when the projections have never been right before, over and over?
I guess we are the insane stupid ones. They are the legal Mafia that once again are making the Feds an offer they can't refuse. They know it's meaningless. Once OK'd they will once again begin with the flood of change orders and burn through the bucks in no time.  Then so and so will resign, a new Mafia member will be put in his place, and that guy will once again come hat in hand with the very, very, very last request for more cashola to finally, finally, finally finish the Disneyland ride.  
Of course, the last request is never the last request and they will come back for 3 years of operating expenses because the previous money was to "finish", not "run" the rail.
It has absolutely become a criminal enterprise.