4 Jan 2013 9:33 pm
Republican Hypocrisy Inaction WatchGOPers who had no problem demanding federal disaster assistance suddenly find fault with Sandy aid.The Republican Party owns this mess and more specifically the House of Representatives Republicans, up to and including Speaker John Boehner. They have had weeks to get a Hurricane Sandy aid package passed, but they sat on it. They’ve had a version to work with for more than three weeks.The House finally acted today on one portion of the overall $60b request for aid from states affected by Hurricane Sandy. They finally acted to approve the $9.7b portion that re-funds the National Flood Insurance Program.The people affected by this program are people who actually paid flood insurance premiums into this program for insurance. Republicans ignore that basic fact when they vote to oppose this funding. They have a fiduciary duty to act promptly. They failed miserably on that account, and it was only the righteous indignation of Republicans in New York and New Jersey, along with Governor Chris Christie to get even this meager piece of the reconstruction package to the floor for a vote.The final vote was 354-67. All 67 opposed were Republicans. Many were from states that are regularly hit with natural disasters. Here’s the list…When you start digging deeper, you see a rather disturbing pattern. These Republicans had no problem demanding federal disaster assistance for their own constituents, but when it comes to Sandy disaster victims, they suddenly claim that the money’s not there.They’re hypocrites.Among those that I’ve tracked down that have sought aid include some of the leading Republicans in Congress, up to and including former Vice Presidential nominee Paul Ryan.The entire Kansas delegation opposed the Sandy flood insurance program fund bill, despite the fact that Kansas regularly seeks and receives without hesitation aid for tornadoes and severe weather as well as droughts and flooding.For those who forget, Hurricane Katrina, which wasn’t exactly a model for federal action, still managed to approve the emergency aid package within 10 days. Congress is going on more than two months and still hasn’t fully funded the Sandy reconstruction. Fault resides completely with the Republicans who have held this up for nothing more than partisan political bickering.Now, you’ll hear that some of these Republicans have no problem with disaster aid, but only when accompanied by offsetting cuts. None was requested or needed for prior disasters - and it sets bad precedent in any case. This is a fundamental job of governance and the federal government’s duty and responsibility to the public. This isn’t about finding ways to cut spending. It’s about getting affected areas back up and running and restore the economic viability of affected regions. The faster the aid comes in, the faster the economic vitality of the region is restored.It really is that simple.The faster the aid flows in, the faster the affected local economy will improve. Businesses will be able to move forward with their own rebuilding plans. Individuals will be able to move ahead with their own home restorations and rebuilding. Localities can plan their own rebuilding efforts. This all gets stalled because of Congressional inaction. And the GOP must be held accountable for this.I guess these pinheads think it's okay to deny aid to blue states like NY or NJ, even though they send much more money to the federal government than they ever get back, while their red states suck off the teat of those same blue states.Maybe the Dems should vote no, the next time one of these right wing flying monkeys has a natural disaster in their state.Yeah.....that'll happen. ROFL