Once again, FEMA's incompetence has reared its ugly head.  Many of you probably read Rep. Henry Waxman's and my letter to acting Director of FEMA David Paulison regarding high levels of formaldehyde in FEMA travel trailers.  In short, it appears that FEMA carelessly overlooked potential hazards in the trailers before they were issued to thousands of hurricane victims.  Preliminary reports indicate that the high levels of formaldehyde mixed with the hot summer air have lead to respiratory problems for trailer residents.

Unfortunately, formaldehyde is not the only problem that FEMA faces right now.  Last week, a report was issued which said that another $1.5 billion was awarded for temporary housing contracts on top of the already $3.4 billion that has been awarded since the hurricanes.  This week, reports have shown that keys issued to FEMA trailer park residents can open as many as 60 trailers in the same park.

Billions of dollars would seemingly be enough to provide safe and adequate housing for hurricane victims, but there remain thousands of people who are still waiting for temporary housing.  In St. Bernard Parish, one of
the hardest hit areas by Hurricane Katrina, 1,600 households are still waiting for trailers or have trailers that are still waiting to be connected to utility lines.  Meanwhile families are forced to live in trailers packed with 10 people when they were designed for three or four. It is simply inexcusable that people are forced to live like this in America. Read more...

Today's CBO projection of another drop in the Federal budget deficit is further proof that the tax relief policies passed by this Republican Congress are fueling a real economic rebound.  This latest prediction puts the deficit at $36 billion lower than the mid-year economic report from the Office of Management and Budget in July. When Congress approves policies that let businesses invest in more jobs and let families put more into their family budgets, the American economy thrives.

This has become another unfortunate example of how White House misdirection, arrogance and mismanagement have needlessly complicated our goal of protecting the American people. I have always believed that the Bush-Cheney warrantless domestic spying program violated our laws. We can and should wiretap terrorists under the current FISA law. The problem has been the Bush-Cheney Administration’s insistence on doing it illegally, without checks and balances to prevent abusing the rights of Americans. By following the Constitution and our laws, we can protect both our security and our American values.

When I’m out on the campaign trail, I find that working Iowans are unhappy about the way their tax dollars are being spent. I’ve talked with people that have to make tough decisions with their family budget and can’t understand why the federal budget doesn’t work the same way. As our deficit has ballooned it is becoming clear that our irresponsible spending will become a burden on our children and grandchildren. Pork barrel projects are the root of the problem. This year Congress approved over 15,000 earmarks, nearly four times as many as were in the budget ten years ago.

I have proposed a three-point plan for bringing spending reform to Washington. First, we need to give line-item veto authority to the president. We also need to bring more sunshine into the earmarking process. By that I mean, no more shepherding bills through Congress in the middle of the night and putting an end to the practice of adding earmarks to bills just before they come to the floor. Lastly, I support an amendment to the United States Constitution that requires Congress to balance the federal budget.

The budget process is broken and it’s time we enact some responsible spending reforms.

I appreciate the efforts of the international community in working to bring peace to the Middle East but I believe the agreement which has been reached will not work. Any agreement that does not completely disarm Hezbollah and destroy their capability to rearm is destined to lead to more war in the future.

A UN force, or any peacekeeping force that does not fully disarm Hezbollah, or destroy its military capacity will only lead to more confrontation in the region, and possibly even lead to a more disastrous and wider war down the road. Only with the complete and fully-monitored disarmament and disbandment of Hezbollah can Israel and Lebanon live together as stable, peaceful and democratic neighbors.

This Sunday, August 20th, will mark the 10-year anniversary of the last time that the Congress increased the minimum wage, an unconscionable fact that currently leaves millions of workers struggling simply to put food on their table.  Unfortunately, instead of addressing this issue, the Republican leadership is playing political games, as evident by their recent move to tie a vote on the minimum wage to yet another tax cut for the wealthiest 7,500 families in America.  This is absurd.

Over 6 million workers in America would directly benefit from a two-step raise in the minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 per hour.  It's time that the Republican leadership stopped playing games with these workers and allowed for an up or down vote when the Congress returns from recess.

Campaigning in my hometown of Syracuse and throughout the 25th District of New York has been one of the most valuable learning experiences of my life. I am thankful to have the opportunity to meet voters at parades, festivals, rallies and other community events and even more thankful to have the opportunity to hear from voters. Believe it or not, retail politics has become one of my favorite new pastimes. It allows me an opportunity to listen to the concerns of real people, not beltway insiders.

Day after day I’ve learned what voters want in their Representative. It’s rather simple actually. They want leadership. I firmly believe that no seat is safe in 2006. People are, quite frankly, fed up with a Congress they perceive to be doing absolutely nothing to helping make their lives better.

Voters in my district believe that we need new priorities in Iraq. Beltway pundits debate each other everyday as to whether or not we’re involved in a “civil war.

No amount of Republican spin will hide the following: nearly five years after the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, the bipartisan 9/11 Commission gave the Republican-controlled government 5 "F's", 12 "D's", and 2 "Incompletes" for poor progress in terrorism prevention and readiness. In fact, just this weekend, the Republican Chairman of the 9/11 Commission said "We're not protecting our own people in this country. The government is not doing its job." Clearly the Republicans have been spending more time on rhetoric than producing results, whether it comes to port security, airline screening, or capturing Osama Bin Laden.

Democrats, however, have been fighting for tough, comprehensive policies that will protect America and restore our leadership in the world. Our Real Security Agenda provides a framework of forward-looking policies that addresses all aspects of our national security, from our homeland security to our energy security, and is a central part of how we plan to lead American in a new direction.

The Federal Reserve reported today that industrial production rose a solid 0.4 percent last month after soaring 0.8 percent in June.  While a red hot July caused utility output (to power our air conditioners) to surge 2 percent, manufacturing output rose a subdued 0.1 percent to a new all-time high!  Still that's not too bad considering the 0.8 percent rise in manufacturing production in June.

All told, manufacturing output has increased 5.8 percent over the past year, led by double digit growth in primary metals, computers and electronic products, aerospace, and electrical equipment.

Not too bad...not too bad at all.