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Reid 'dismayed' Boehner didn't bring up Sandy relief bill for vote
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said he was “dismayed” that the House didn’t pass an emergency-spending bill for victims of Hurricane Sandy before adjourning.
“There are tens of thousands of people in New York and New Jersey who have had their lives turned upside down,” Reid said on the floor Wednesday. “I am dismayed and really saddened that the House of Representatives walked away last night. ... It’s been months now and these people are still suffering.”
In October, Hurricane Sandy hit several Northeast states, demolishing homes and damaging businesses.
The Senate passed a $60.4 billion emergency-spending bill late last month and the House was going to take up a $27 billion version, but late Tuesday evening Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) declined to bring the bill to the floor. On Wednesday, the House adjourned, making it unlikely the measure will be considered this Congress.
GOP Rep. Pete King (N.Y.) on Wednesday suggested the decision would cost Republicans seats in affected states. King also said he might not support Boehner for Speaker in a Thursday vote and said people in the Northeast should not donate to congressional Republicans until the Sandy issue was resolved.
“I am deeply disappointed that the House of Representatives has turned their backs on the people suffering,” Reid said, adding this voice to those critics. “That does not include Democratic Leader [Nancy] Pelosi or Leader [Steny] Hoyer ... it’s not who we should be as Americans, just to walk away from these people.”
If the House does not also pass a supplemental bill on Hurricane Sandy before the end of this Congress, then the Senate work will be for nothing. A new Congress starts tomorrow at noon, giving Boehner less than 24 hours to act.
Boehner has said he would take up an emergency-spending bill early in the next Congress, and is expected to meet with lawmakers from New York and New Jersey on Wednesday.
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