House overwhelmingly passes $7.9 billion Harvey aid bill

[DonViejo]

Source: Associated Press




Andrew Taylor, Associated Press
Associated PressSeptember 6, 2017

WASHINGTON (AP) -- The House on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed $7.9 billion in Hurricane Harvey disaster relief as warring Republicans and Democrats united behind help for victims of that storm as an ever more powerful new hurricane bore down on Florida.

The 419-3 vote sent the aid package — likely the first of several — to the Senate in hopes of sending the bill to President Donald Trump before dwindling federal disaster reserves run out at the end of this week.

"Help is on the way," said Texas GOP Rep. John Culberson, whose Houston district was slammed by the storm. "The scale of the tragedy is unimaginable. But in the midst of all this, and all the suffering, it really reflects the American character, how people from all over the country stepped up to help Houstonians recover from this."

The first installment in Harvey aid is to handle the immediate emergency needs and replenish Federal Emergency Management Agency reserves in advance of Hurricane Irma, which is barreling through the Caribbean toward Florida.

Read more: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/house-vote-7-9b-harvey-relief-bill-075820835--finance.html?soc_trk=gcm&soc_src=7f8f7c22-fa96-302d-ad7f-4cee54b777d4&.tsrc=notification-brknews

[no_hypocrisy]

1. Will the republicans now raise the Debt Limit or

cut indiscriminately into programs they don't like?

[haveahart]

2. Who were the three nays?

[Archae]

4. These three, according to the Washington Post.

Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), Justin Amash (R-Mich.) and Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.) voted no.

[herding cats]

5. Reps. Thomas Massie (R-Ky.), Justin Amash (R-Mich.) and Andy Biggs (R-Ariz.)

Apparently 12 didn't vote but I don't know who they were.

[procon]

3. Hurrah! That's only 4% of the estimated $190 BILLION needed.

Does everyone realize what a cowardly bunch these Republicans are for only ponying up this pittance of the overall costs?

You know what the next step is in the Republican's tapdancing sideshow because they've done the same thing before. Here comes the delaying tactics, the blame game, the worrisome "concerns", and any excuse to avoid funding disaster aid that will erode their pet projects like walls and deporting POC, or scrubbing all those juicy tax cuts they've planned to reward themselves and their wealthy pals.

[LonePirate]

6. Yeah, that's chump change given the cost of Harvey.

Many homes and businesses will need to be demolished and rebuilt not to mention infrastructure repairs and improvements be it schools or roads or sewer systems. More aid will be needed.