Pelosi to Blanco: 'We Have Kept Our Promises; We Will Keep Working on Behalf of the Survivors of the Storm'

June 19, 2007

Washington, D.C. - Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, Majority Whip James E. Clyburn, and other Democratic leaders met this afternoon with Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco today to discuss ongoing efforts to address the needs posed by Hurricane Katrina. Below are Pelosi's remarks:

'I thank our very distinguished Democratic Whip, Mr. Clyburn, for bringing us together this afternoon. Thank you for your leadership as chair of our Katrina task force to make sure that the promises that we made to Governor Blanco are promises that we kept.

'When we visited the GulfCoast, we saw the tremendous need, we saw the urgency. We saw the challenge to conscience that Katrina posed to our country and we were determined to meet that challenge as best we could.

'We have welcomed Governor Blanco here on a number of occasions; I'm pleased to welcome her here again. This time, we are able to say that we have kept our promises. As our distinguished Whip Clyburn said, we had $6.4 billion in the supplemental spending bill Congress passed just last month. That was $3 billion more than the President requested. And that $3 billion went to meet the needs of the people of Katrina, such as helping schools recover, and repair and complete flood protection projects.

'Because of Mr. Clyburn's relentlessness, and Mr. Melancon's, on all of these issues, the supplemental also included a provision that waives the local funding match requirements for FEMA funding under the Stafford Act, allowing thousands of reconstruction projects to get under way. In some ways, some say that is more important than some of the money because it is a liberating provision in the bill.

'Because of Mr. Clyburn's leadership and relentless advocacy of leadership of Mr. Melancon and the distinguished chairmen who are here, the chair of the Financial Services Committee, Mr. Frank, the House passed a comprehensive housing bill that addresses public housing, rental and low-income housing needs. The Chairman of the Appropriations Committee Mr. Obey, the Chairman of the Transportation Committee, Mr. Oberstar, and the Chairman of the Homeland Security Committee Bennie Thompson, who is also from the Gulf Coast, have all been instrumental in helping us get to the place where again, we can keep the promises that we made.

'We will keep working on behalf of the survivors of the storm.

'Governor Blanco, welcome. Thank you for your leadership. Thank you for being the persistent advocate and champion that you are. Thank you for helping Congress meet the challenge to counter what Katrina posed to our country.'