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Subscribe to RSSUpdated 11:15 p.m. ET: House Speaker John Boehner is giving some ground on Sandy funding and timing a vote.
The House will now hold a vote Friday on $9 billion in Sandy recovery funds, followed by another vote on $51 billion on Jan. 15th.
Congress did not hold a vote last night, enraging Tri-state-area members of Congress from both parties.
After a blitzing round of cable interviews, in which Republican Rep. Peter King (NY) blasted Boehner for not voting on the funding last night, he and other New York- and New Jersey-area members say their concerns have been addressed.
"Turning your back on people who are starving and freezing is not a Republican value," King had said this morning on CNN.
This afternoon, after a meeting with Boehner, King's tone changed.
"Whatever's done is done, and that's it," King said at an afternoon press conference on Capitol Hill, adding later, "The bottom line is we need the $60 billion." King later said he was satisfied with the response from House GOP leaders.
Boehner and Reps. Michael Grimm (NJ) and Chris Smith (NJ) also now say they will all support Boehner when he comes up for reelection for speaker tomorrow.
The move also came after New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie slammed Boehner and House Republicans earlier in the day.
"Shame on you. Shame on Congress," Christie said in a televised news conference from Trenton, N.J. He called Congress' delay "disgraceful."
"It is why the American people hate Congress," Christie said, adding, "Unlike people in Congress, we have actual responsibilities."
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So will Governor Christie become a fiscally conservative Democrat by next fall?
i hope so
This just in: Boehner to resign and speakership to go to Cantor. Feisty: Please don't bogard that popcorn!
Geez. By definition the Speaker resigns at the end of one Congress and is reelected in the next. So Boehner resigning is pro forma.
Now whether he gets reelected is another thing altogether. Given how nuts those guys are I can see them doing it again.
Funny how turning your back on the poor, sick, elderly, children, working class, unemployed, and even veterans is just fine until it affects someone in your own political party. The Republicans have been exposed for what they are.
Go find a copy of the bill. It does nothing to really help Sandy victims. It is full of pork! Why can the Senate not send a clean bill to the House that goes directly to helping the victims of Sandy????? Does anyone know?
I do not blame the House for not voting on this pathetic excuse for a bill to help people. It does not.
If some of you would take the time to ready some of the crap that these people pass you would understand why the US is in danger of becoming Greece.
Maybe they actually read this one and decided money for Alaska, Florida and making improvements to git-mo prison wasn't a good idea. Oink, Oink, bring on the pork and even more wasteful spending.
This is obviously much less about the victims of Sandy than maintaining his position as Speaker. Duh. And look how fast those others have fallen right into line.
And you can take this @!$%# to the bank folks!!! . . . it was never was about doing the right and decent thing for the American people with these ignorant GOOP clods, it was only about Boner getting his vote, period. These cold, emotionless GOOPers don't give a damn about the suffering going on as a result of hurricane Sandy. They don't care that families are cold and hungry and without homes, they really don't . . . Boner caved to get their vote, pure and simple. And the idiots that they are, they actually think they're pulling the wool over everybody's eyes, when it's glaringly obvious who these creatures are and what they stand for . . . can't wait 'til 2014 -- the year the GOOP will cease to exist in any meaningful manner. Good riddance to bad rubbish . . . time to take out the trash!!
Will people who voted for these heartless, incompetent, obstructionist Republicans finally wake up and vote them out of office? They won't vote to send aid to Americans? They won't vote to extend the rights of disabled people around the world? It literally is ludicrous.
Hey, we had a little storm where I live and my house got damaged and I don't have the right insurance to cover the loss, so later today I will be posting the information you need to send me the money to fix it. I really appreciate since it saves me a lot of money not to by that insurance coverage. Yeah, I live in a flood plane but it is really pretty and I like it here. So let's make a deal, I will save myself a lot of money on insurance and whenever I have storm or flood damge you can send me the cash to fix it. Thanks again for paying for my stuff and I guess I could work a little harder and pay for my own stuff or live within my means but what fun would that be.
Sorry pal, we already pissed away all Republican money for that unnecessary war in Iraq. You know, the one with all the WMD's?
Leave it to a Righty to mock the misery and suffering of hundreds of thousands if not millions of his fellow American. Next time a hurricane comes through your neck of the woods and you've got nothing left but a foundation, remind me to make sure you rot on your own.
PORK?
Ohio Rep. Steve LaTourette slammed his Republican colleagues Wednesday for blocking aid to victims of Hurricane Sandy, calling lawmakers who opposed the relief “chuckleheads,” while Rep. Darrell Issa said he opposed the measure because it was stuffed with pork.
“Your two senators packed this with pork,” Issa said Wednesday on “Fox & Friends,” which airs from New York City, referring to Sens. Chuck Schumer and Kirsten Gillibrand. “They had the opportunity to have a $27 [billion] to $30 billion legit relief package, packed it with pork, then dared us not to vote on it.
Here's an idea.
Have the State supply the Emergency funding to the Sandy Victims out of their own coffers. Then the State can apply to the Federal Government for Reimbursement at which time the Federal Government will go through the Receipts and requests for reimbursement and any funding that wasn't actually spent to Aid Sandy Victims would be denied.
What an outrageous concept, Eh?
Demanding the service first then auditing the bill. How outrageous!
Except the states don't have that kind of money to lay out up front.
The fed loves its loan guarantee programs. Check out my latest post #42.
just got great news from my HR dept - SS tax UP 2%, Medicare TAX UP, and the tax on my commission check just went up 3% to 28% ,,, and if you get a bonus at work - you get to pay the SAME tax as if its commission - thanks Congress - great deal!
BTW - I make a lot less than $400K or even $200K....
Does ANYONE really think that the government knows how to spend our money without wasting it??
Look around, raising income taxes on a few rich people will not do squat except make a few people feel better and get a few others elected. If we pay attention, we will realize that taxes are being raised on everyone... every day... in this country. Real Estate Taxes, Sales Taxes, Excise Taxes, Taxes on Commissions (if you are in sales), taxes on GAS (69c/gallon in CA - Tops in the Country - Yeah Democratic State - Why are you almost bankrupt with all that tax revenue?), Restaurants, Hotels, Car Rentals, Cell Phones, Regular Phones, Internet Access, TV/CABLE, etc, etc, etc....
We pay SOOO MUCH in taxes each year and some people think raising the taxes on a few RICH people is going to fix everything? Get real people - The ONLY people doing well when it comes to taxes is the people that our elected officials sold their souls too and the people who choose to live off the government.
I am not a supporter for Bush, Obama, this Congress or ANY NEW TAXES. Personally the lot of them are liars and they talk out of both sides of their mouth.
Get some term limits in place, get these bums out of office and start cutting out all this wasted Tax $$'s. Lower the taxes (without sneaking the tax back in somewhere else) and the economy will TAKE OFF.
Good move John boy, If the 112th Congress can't get it done maybe the 113th Congress can.
Ok, all of you who are yelling about how heartless the Republicans are, look at the bill!!! Quit screaming and whining and look at it. I don't think 150 million for fisheries in Alaska really will really help the Sandy victims, do you? There are also many more millions in useless pork spending. People, we have got to stop this. This is what is tearing down our country. We must stop spending money, what part of that do you not understand? Yes, give money to the Sandy victims, money to rebuild the infrastructure, help businesses hurt by the storm, but for goodness sake, don't pack the bill with pork and then dare to call it a Sandy relief bill.
Rep. Pete King (R)
The money requested by FEMA for the fisheries was for another declared disaster.
As of friday i think it will be 68 days since the storm hit. The republicans have made it official that they only care about a few billionaires and not the american people they actually work for.
TEXASKG
Ok, all of you who are yelling about how heartless the Republicans are, look at the bill!!! Quit screaming and whining and look at it. I don't think 150 million for fisheries in Alaska really will really help the Sandy victims, do you?
Granted i dont like pork but i dont want my fellow citizens being forced to suffer NEEDLESSLY over pork.
The Republican controlled House under Boehner's leadership has degenerated into a carnival.
All you guys are whining and crying when there is a simple solution to all these problems.
We all know FEMA is a Failure.
How many stories have we heard about after Katrina and the millions of dollars lost in fraud and abuse.
Money that the American tax payer will never get back Because the Federal Government Spends first then somehow thinks it can go back and get that money back after Fraud is discovered?
Every time there is a demand for money for some disaster the Politicians pass a bill with a little bit of the money actually going to help the victims and the rest is pork inserted for every Legislatures pet project.
We need to demand that an Emergency Loan program be set up to cover these disasters administered by the Federal Government.
When a Disaster occurs, the Stae declares a state of emergency and immediately get loan guarantees from FEMA to cover the disaster costs.
The State is responsible for dispersing aid and funds because they can do it immediately and will monitor the program for fraud and abuse etc..
When it becomes time for the State to pay back the Fed the State has to submit all documentation and receipts to an audit committee and they will go through and forgive all funds that are accurately accounted for by the State.
Any funds the State cannot account for as actually being truly disaster relief to help victims the State is liable for and has to pay back to.
What a Concept, Eh? Actually making sure Taxpayers money is spent on what it is meant for.
How many other programs do you think this would work for?
Imagine the Fraud and abuse that would be eliminated.
Don`t forget that certain southern states took their Katrina aid funds and spent them on the casinos rather than their citizens that really needed it. There is nothing a state cannot justify from a disaster.....even it is something that has been on their books for ten years before the disaster (or any other type of stretch).
Hey GOP'ers - President Obama won. Get over it!!!
The GOP -- To Fund FEMA for Sandy -- cut spending on entitlements for the needy to pay for the Sandy disaster?
Cut funding for the needy on the right to fund the needy on the left? Interesting -- concept.
I wonder which real needy will gets food, clothing & shelter next month?
We know that entlitlements have to be fixed my friends at the GOP -- Sandy victims need your support now and not at the expense of others -- at the pace that you folks in Congress work -- we'll be saying Happy New Years again at best.
Try looking at those programs that are entitlements for the wealthy & corporations first where tax loop holes -- entitle them over others to special treatment.
Food, clothing & shelter -- these are the basic bottom line needs of all people.
Work on these things -- Yes Work -- and get them solved -- stop playing ping pong with the lives of needy people.
So tell me something Liberals....
Where exactly are we going to come up with the money for this?
Is King Barack going to mandate us to pay "just a little more" so we can cover the cost of this waste of money too?
And before you bleeding hearts cry about all the damage....I lost my house in the flooding of the Souris River up here in Minot, ND a year and a half ago. I borrowed the money to rebuild my house. I feel bad for these people but ultimately we have to look ourselves in the mirror and ask a question that all of us on an individual level have to ask ourselves sometimes:
"How are we going to pay for this?"
As several other posters have pointed out, what about cutting the corporate welfare that big business gets. I hear many republicans posters keep stating liberals and Obama supporters are lazy, taking unemployment, takers....just what do you call CEO's and big business that get subsidies and tax cuts/loopholes and are barely paying anything to the government. In answer to your question, I would say stop the oil subsidies and loopholes, and place the increase in revenue to FEMA for natural disaster relief that state and local governments can't support in large disaster zones.
These clowns need to be reminded of this little fact on a daily basis. They strut and rant as though they came out on top of things in November.
So why is it these States think the American tax payer owes them a nickel. If my house burne down or blown down by a wind shear the goverment would say "Oh well, hope you have insurance. We owe NY, NJ and CT nothing.
Your trailer burning down or blown down by a wind shear isn't quite the same as:
Hurricane 820 miles wide
$62 billion in damage
Over 72,000 homes destroyed in NJ alone.
No insurance company can handle that. No state has the budget to handle that.
i pay for insurance with the expectation that they will pay for damage...that is why they assess their risk potential in an area and determine coverage and rates...so if they can't pay, then their assets ought to be sold and executives should do some jail time for fraud. as far as the rest, it is a personal responsibility and yeah, too many people build too closely together there, and so a lot more damage is done however it is no more/less devastating and very insulting for you to assume that those in the midwest are living in trailers. some do, the most i've ever seen in my life was in florida but i am sure they are in every community. doesn't make them the majority or the people who live there lesser, as you seem to imply. the insurance company my husband and i use explained that in risk areas such as coastal areas, flood plains, etc they only will take on so many policies and the rates are also based on the risk. and i'm not saying the states should assume all the expenses, i think individuals are responsible for their own properties, and the federal government can LOAN money to the states under very favorable terms for governmental properties and needs.
See post #42. Wouldn't it be nice if our government was concerned with fraud and abuse before they hand out billions of dollars of our money instead f spending millions of dollars trying to get it back?
http://www.justice.gov/criminal/katrina/
Both Christie and Cuomo were prosecutors. They wouldn't stand for the fraud that they have out in the sticks.
Sure, Right, Just like Jon Corzine the Former Governor of NJ can be trusted Right?
I guess you missed the first story about a Former Liberty County Judge and Commissioner being indicted.
NOAH, the Right always rants about "fraud and waste". Yes, there is plenty of both, no doubt of that. We should guard against it as much as possible though it will never be completely eliminated. It goes with the territory. When you are speaking of billions of dollars it is inevitable that some will disappear.
Would you recommend that we disband our entire military because the Pentagon pisses away billions on a regular basis? What about all the defense contractors who routinely screw the American taxpayer with their constant cost overruns and projects way behind schedule??? You want to cry about waste? I suggest you go and check out the curret F-35 Joint Strike Fighter which is so far over budget it's downright terrifying. I know that it goes agains the grain of Conservatives to help their fellow man but in a case like this, I would have though even you Righties would support it.
Curious isn't it that I come up with an idea that could get aid to people right away and all you can do is attack me for it.
I guess its better they have to wait two months for Congress to act.
What makes you think I'm a Rightie?
Because you don't agree with my comment so of course that means I must be a Rightie?
You just assume I'm a Rightie so you can immediately dismiss my idea?
Is there any wonder why nothing can ever get solved.
Why don't you try looking at my idea posted in comment #42 without the partisan glasses on.
David,
I think you have a valid point....and letting the state and local governments do some of the work, but, when a large disaster zone such as hurricanes, wildfires, earthquakes, where large infrastructures are damaged and destroyed...I don't think local and state governments have the amount of revenues on hand to handle it...loans and bureaucratizes have lots of red tape for looking over receipts to pay back...and many municipalities are running low on revenues due to lower property taxes and businesses taxes,. You have some good points, and I think Ozzie has some valid points on cutting down on the waste and fraud with the defense budget, with the savings going to a fund for natural disasters. You were asking where the money was coming from and I hope I have helped with the brainstorming you brought up.
I'm going to refine it and re post it.
It will take care of a States financial needs immediately after a State Declares an Emergency, within hours not days or weeks, and remove "Congress" from the Disaster relief Equation, other than they might need to appropriate money for it from time to time, actually budget it ahead of time so the money is there and avialable when its needed.
It's always amusing to me when the same Republicans who are always preaching for smaller, less intrusive government and constantly complaining about, and trying to block, monetary bailouts turn around and cry and throw little temper tantrums like a bunch of spoiled 5-year-olds when they don't get THEIR monetary bailouts.
I don't think they really know WHAT they want or what they're supposed to stand for.
The only house these elected representatives deserve to be in is the out house, these fine folks being so full of feces they must be bursting at the bottom.