[Congressional Record Volume 142, Number 125 (Thursday, September 12, 1996)]
[House]
[Pages H10352-H10353]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                             HURRICANE FRAN

  Mr. WISE. Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent to address theHouse 
for 5 minutes.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from West Virginia?
  Mr. DORNAN. Mr. Speaker, reserving the right to object, and of course 
I will not object, I do not know what happened earlier where 1 minute 
was cut off for the Members of the minority. I was a minority Member 
for 18 years. I just think 1 minute and 5 minutes, and 60 minutes can 
go on all night, and I did not vote for that midnight cutoff. But I 
just wondered if we have a long series of 5 minutes who were not 
recorded or requesting a 5-minute speech today so I know how much time 
I have before my special order, because I am the first with a 60-minute 
special order today.

[[Page H10353]]

  Could I inquire of my colleagues how many 5 minutes they are going to 
ask?
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair cannot predict how many 5 minutes 
are going to be coming up. The Chair would intend to extend courtesy to 
all Members on the floor to request 5 minutes.
  Mr. DORNAN. Well believe me, a robust, wide open, freewheeling debate 
in the world's greatest legislature, I will not object to any 
unanimous-consent request.
  Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of objection.
  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the 
gentleman from West Virginia.
  There was no objection.

                              {time}  1300

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The gentleman from West Virginia [Mr. Wise] 
is recognized for 5 minutes.


                        concerns regarding iraq

  Mr. WISE. Mr. Speaker, I am going to speak about Hurricane Fran, but 
I want to take just a moment to address some of the concerns that have 
been addressed concerning Iraq.
  I happen to be one of the most ardent supporters of the War Powers 
Act. I have been frustrated that Presidents of both parties have 
disregarded it in years past. Be that as it may, I think this situation 
that the President is in is difficult enough already.
  I note with interest that a previous speaker talked about President 
Bush going to the United Nations six or seven times. That is true. 
There was a vote in Congress. That was over a 6-month period, as we 
slowly built troops up to a 500,000 person level.
  In this case, we have surface-to-air missiles winging at our 
airplanes during the last couple of days. We have Saddam Hussein 
drawing direct provocations, lines in the sands. I do not remember, in 
the case of an immediate action, I do not remember President Bush or 
President Reagan coming to Congress to announce in advance the details 
of how they are going to invade Grenada, perform the air raid on Libya, 
or invade Panama, all actions which received bipartisan support. I 
suggest that may be the reason Congress has not received a full 
briefing today on the details about what probably will be upcoming 
military action in Iraq.
  Later on, of course, there does need to be full explanation. I, too, 
watch with concern, as much as anyone else. I also know the Commander 
in Chief needs some flexibility.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to talk about Hurricane Fran because, Mr. 
Speaker, as that storm has devastated so much of our east coast, as it 
certainly has eight counties, actually more than that, a number of 
counties in West Virginia. Governor Caperton requested a disaster 
assistance declaration from President Clinton. I backed up that 
request. I am happy to say the WhiteHouse acted immediately. Now eight 
counties in West Virginia, as well as a number of others across the 
east coast, are now in a federally declared disaster area.
  People should know, Mr. Speaker, that this means that the full range 
of Federal Emergency Management Agency programs are available today as 
we speak to the residents of all those declared counties. So what I 
have encouraged my constituents to do is immediately to call the toll 
free number, the FEMA, Federal Emergency Management Agency toll-free 
number of 1-800-462-9029, because they can begin the application 
process right now, Mr. Speaker. They can start that going. They do not 
have to wait to speak to anybody personally.
  Also, Mr. Speaker, I have gotten a lot of questions about, well, if I 
were in a flood before, and we have had four now in West Virginia in 
the last 9 months, if I was in a disaster area during the last year, do 
I file again? And the answer, Mr. Speaker, is yes. Anyone who was hit 
by Fran in West Virginia is in one of the declared disaster counties 
needs to call that toll-free number, once again identify themselves, 
the county they are in, and begin immediately to receive that 
assistance.
  The Federal Emergency Management Agency is going to be offering, Mr. 
Speaker, the same assistance as in past floods: disaster housing 
assistance for those who need it, special crisis counseling for those 
with special needs, unemployment assistance to those who have been put 
out of work by the flooding, special loans for homeowners, renters, and 
business owners to repair or replace damaged property, tax assistance 
through programs from the IRS, the State and local governments. This is 
crucial, Mr. Speaker, that people begin this process now.
  It is likely that FEMA will set up throughout the State of West 
Virginia several disaster relief centers where people can walk in and 
receive personal assistance. I urge, though, Mr. Speaker, that people 
not wait for that, but call that toll-free number.
  There is something else constituents can do as well, Mr. Speaker. 
That is, if they have suffered damage and they have a lot of debris, 
they should document that damage as much as possible through 
photographs, videotaping, whatever means possible. In some cases, the 
National Guard is going to have to pick that debris up, or others will 
have to pick that debris up and get it out of the way, so it is 
important to document that.
  Mr. Speaker, there have been an incredible number of sagas of heroism 
during the last few days. You cannot say enough about the National 
Guard, the Red Cross, the Salvation Army, the volunteer fire 
departments, the emergency services operations, both State- and county-
wide.
  There are so many tales of heroism: The elementary school principal 
in Moorefield, who came beseeching the Governor to get her school back 
up and running so they lost as few days as possible, to bring stability 
back to people's lives; the contractor in Hardy County who worked 
himself to exhaustion and a trip to the hospital trying to shore up the 
levee to make sure that damage was minimized.
  So many tales: Other contractors donating equipment throughout the 
area to help try and stave off the damage caused by the flooding; 
theHampshire County junior high students who went door-to-door taking 
water to people. Mr. Speaker, there are so many tales that relate, once 
again, how people pull together in the best spirit of West Virginians.
  We have another digging out to do, Mr. Speaker, but happily, FEMA has 
responded quickly, and now what I urge people to do is to take 
advantage of that, even if they have another claim in from a previous 
flood, and we have had far too many this year in our State, but even if 
they have a claim in, they need to call, Mr. Speaker, that toll-free 
number of 1-800-462-9029 and begin that process of digging out.

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