Statement of Rep. Emanuel Cleaver on Hurricane Katrina

STATEMENT OF REP. EMANUEL CLEAVER ON HURRICANE KATRINA
September 2, 2005

Congress Passes Legislation to Provide Emergency Funds

(Washington, DC)-"My heart and my prayers go out to all those caught in the path of Hurricane Katrina and the conditions they are suffering in its wake. Katrina was a hurricane of disastrous proportions that has left thousands of people without food, clean water, shelter and medicine, particularly those people stranded in New Orleans where conditions are absolutely unlivable and public safety is virtually nonexistent. They have waited for days hoping for at least some sort of information about when they might get to escape their ravaged city and where they will go next.

With the chaos and looting that has ensued in New Orleans, it is critical that the government get in there and provide the necessary relief-not tomorrow, not next week, but RIGHT NOW. People are dying on the streets, and President Bush and the federal government can't afford to waste another minute.

It is inexcusable that the President and his Administration did not act more swiftly to provide the basic necessities of survival to the victims, nor did they act swiftly to ensure the City's public safety. As the richest nation in the world and the world's only superpower, we ought to be ashamed. With so many troops abroad in Iraq attempting to secure a whole nation, it is inexcusable that we can't secure one city on our own shores.

That is why I am pleased that Congress stepped up today to pass legislation providing $10.5 billion in emergency funds for the relief and recovery from Hurricane Katrina. The Supplemental will deliver $10 billion in emergency aid for FEMA and $500 million for the Department of Defense.

However, this is only a down payment. FEMA is currently spending $500 million a day and under this scenario, the $10 billion for FEMA will give them only another 20 days as they continue to assess their needs.

It could take months for families to find homes and establish some sort of normalcy in their day-to-day life, and I call on the President and the federal government to remain committed to helping these people rebuild their lives.

Americans will stand strong together to help our brothers and sisters in their time of dire need, and the Kansas City area is no exception. Children's Mercy Hospital has already opened their doors to 24 young patients and families flown in from New Orleans by the Missouri Air National Guard, and the Red Cross has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars from Kansas City. The outpouring of support from across the country has been phenomenal, and I am confident that our citizens will remain resolute until the job is done.

http://www.house.gov/apps/list/press/mo05_cleaver/PR2SEP05.html