Sen. David Perdue: What's causing the delay in disaster relief? Here's what really happened behind closed doors

[Leroy N. Soetoro]

https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/sen-david-perdue-whats-causing-the-delay-
in-disaster-relief-heres-what-really-happened-behind-closed-doors

Our country has suffered a series of unprecedented natural disasters over
the last year. Hurricanes in the Southeast, wildfires in California,
earthquakes in Alaska, and floods in the Midwest have left millions of
Americans in desperate need of help from the federal government.

Congress had an opportunity to pass a $13.6 billion disaster aid package
that would have provided immediate assistance to people who are suffering.
Senate Democrats voted against it.

Why? Democrats said Republicans were unwilling to provide adequate funding
for Puerto Rico. That is absolutely ridiculous.

Here’s what really happened behind closed doors:

Last December, disaster aid got caught up in the border security debate
and was left out of the spending bill. Senate Republicans went back to
Senate Democrats to see what was needed in order to make a deal on
disaster relief as soon as possible.

It was determined that $600 million to extend the food assistance program
in Puerto Rico was most critical since the program was set to expire at
the end of March.

I personally brought this updated request to the president, and he agreed
to it.

We added the $600 million to our bill in the Senate, and then we voted on
April 1st. I wish this was the end of the story. It’s not.

Democrats cowered to their political self-interests and their leadership
and killed our disaster relief bill on the floor of the United States
Senate.

We gave Democrats exactly what they asked for, but Senate Minority Leader
Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., decided to change course and hold disaster relief
victims hostage in a misguided effort to extract concessions from
Republicans on a number of unrelated topics, including border security.

Schumer watched carefully as Democratic senators cast their votes on the
disaster relief bill. After the senior senator from California, Dianne
Feinstein, voted “yes” on the bill – which includes billions for her state
– the Democratic leader pulled her aside and then she switched her vote to
“no.” At the same time, the other Democratic senator from California,
Kamala Harris, was in Nevada campaigning for president and missed the vote
entirely. This kind of blind partisanship is exactly what the American
people find unacceptable about Washington.

Now, Democrats have started a campaign of manufactured outrage and have
purposely misled the American people for their own political gain. They’re
pushing headlines like, “Trump’s Grudge Against Puerto Rico Is Blocking
Needed Disaster Aid Across The US.” That could not be further from the
truth.

President Trump has been resolute in his support of the people of Puerto
Rico.

The president has already approved $41 billion in combined disaster aid
for Puerto Rico after Hurricanes Irma and Maria hit the Island. He has
also made an additional $50 billion available to Puerto Rico going
forward.

As a result, Puerto Rico is set to receive three times more funding than
Texas did for Hurricane Harvey in 2017 and nearly double what was
appropriated for Hurricane Sandy in 2013.

It’s clear this fight has nothing to do with Puerto Rico funding. For
Democrats, this is about obstructing the president and preventing him from
keeping his promise to help the American people recover after hurricanes,
tornadoes, and wildfires ravaged their communities.

People in my state have been waiting on federal disaster aid for six
months. While the Democratic Leader and his members play politics, Georgia
farmers are going bankrupt, California wildfire victims are struggling to
rebuild, and Puerto Rican families are losing access to food benefits.

If Democrats truly cared about the people of Puerto Rico, maybe they would
listen to them. Puerto Rico’s own representative in Congress, Jenniffer
González-Colón, said our bill provides exactly what her constituents need.
Specifically, she said, “I urge swift Senate passage of the $600 million
funding for the Nutrition Assistance Program. Over 1.3 million of my
constituents are already experiencing cuts in their food benefits. Puerto
Rico needs this funding and needs it now.”

I’m sick and tired of politicians that claim to be looking out for the
little guys, but all they do is treat them like pawns in their power
games. Democrats claim they want to be bipartisan, but time and time
again, they fail to rise to the occasion.

Democrats may think they’re sticking it to the president, but they’re
actually sticking it to the American people. Georgians are paying
attention and will not forget how Democrats have abandoned them in their
time of need. Mark my words, the American people will remember how
President Trump is standing up and fighting for them.



--
No collusion - Special Counsel Robert Swan Mueller III, March 2019.

Donald J. Trump, 304 electoral votes to 227, defeated compulsive liar in
denial Hillary Rodham Clinton on December 19th, 2016. The clown car
parade of the democrat party ran out of gas and got run over by a Trump
truck.

Congratulations President Trump. Thank you for cleaning up the disaster
of the Obama presidency.

The Obama-led Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS)
approved Uranium One in fall 2010. With a little luck, we'll see
compulsive liar Hillary Clinton in jail before she dies.

Under Barack Obama's leadership, the United States of America became the
The World According To Garp.

Obama increased total debt from $10 trillion to $20 trillion in the eight
years he was in office, and sold out heterosexuals for Hollywood queer
liberal democrat donors.