[Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 28 (Tuesday, February 11, 2025)]
[House]
[Page H632]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                     SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA WILDFIRES

  (Mr. DeSAULNIER asked and was given permission to address the House 
for 1 minute and to revise and extend his remarks.)
  Mr. DeSAULNIER. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call attention to the 
continued suffering and amazing destruction caused by wildfires in 
southern California and the critical need for this body and for the 
President to aid those Americans affected by this natural disaster.
  Over 16,000 homes and structures were destroyed in the L.A. fires, 
and at one point, 200,000 residents were under evacuation orders. 
Severe drought and powerful winds made firefighters' jobs even more 
difficult.
  While we should be discussing how we, as Americans, help other 
Americans, as we have always done in other disasters, somehow we have 
gotten districted with political theater and trying to score political 
points.
  Successful recovery from any disaster wherever it is takes 
cooperation across all levels of government. We have done it before, 
and we can do it again. We can't afford to waste time with political 
games or unnecessary conditions on aid.
  Mr. Speaker, I urge my colleagues on both sides to do the right thing 
and deliver aid to their fellow Americans who have had their lives 
upended by tragedy.

                          ____________________