Hurricane Katrina

HURRICANE KATRINA -- (House of Representatives - September 02, 2005)

(Mr. SMITH of New Jersey asked and was given permission to address the House for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)

Mr. SMITH of New Jersey. Mr. Speaker, in January I traveled to Aceh, Puquet and Colombo and saw American foreign aid save the lives of tens of thousands of people ravaged by the tsunami. Two weeks ago, I was in Darfur, Sudan and visited refugee and IDP camps in that war-ravaged area and saw firsthand U.S. taxpayer funds and U.S. leadership saving and rebuilding the lives of hundreds of thousands of Africans. But charity begins at home, Mr. Speaker, and we must leave no stone unturned in our effort to save the lives of Americans, our neighbors, devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

Today's appropriation is a downpayment. It is a beginning of an aggressive humanitarian effort that will take months, even years, to rebuild the lives of those shattered people. Today we say to the suffering, we will do whatever it takes to save lives, to mitigate disease, and rebuild.

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