Rep. Engel - Tying Disaster Relief to Politics is "Shameful"

Statement

Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY-17) blasted House Republican leadership for playing politics with disaster victims by tying relief funds for to these victims to cuts at the U.S. Department of Energy - funds intended to create "green" jobs and technology. To view Rep. Engel's speech on the House floor - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuYxxKEUvLI

Bipartisan opposition defeated the Continuing Resolution to fund the government on Wednesday, and a September 30 deadline to avoid a government shutdown looms.

"I call on the House leadership to follow the Senate version of the Continuing Resolution which contains funding to help disaster victims without spending offsets. It is an unprecedented maneuver to use disaster relief in this manner," said Rep. Engel. "Helping Americans hurt by natural disasters is what the federal government should be doing. It is part of the reason government exists -- of the people, by the people and for the people.

"Families in my district in the Bronx, Rockland and Westchester Counties are awaiting the condemnation of their homes. Some people have lost everything -- their photo albums, their children's toys, family heirlooms. Meanwhile, we are here talking about offsets. This requirement advocated by Republicans is heartless. Fiscal responsibility does not mean simply cutting programs you don't like. It is shameful that House Republican leadership would play politics with families at their most vulnerable. Families up and down the Eastern seaboard, along with victims in Joplin, MO and Birmingham, AL, are trying desperately to recover from devastating hurricanes, tornados and floods. Republicans are using their plight to score political points with their radical base.

"I thought their position of forcing the poorest Americans, the unemployed, struggling middle class families and small businesses to bear the weight of their new-found fiscal responsibility was the worst they could do. I never dreamed they would add disaster victims to that list. Never before have there been offsets required to deal with disaster assistance -- this is not the time to start.

"As a result, we have yet another manufactured crisis that our country faces because the House Majority continues to play politics with our budget, our economy, and now with people's lives. The House Republicans have a chance to do the right thing and help disaster victims without strings attached. Let's see if they come to their senses."

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