[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 151 (2005), Part 15]
[Senate]
[Pages 20269-20272]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           HURRICANE KATRINA

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, it is difficult to find words adequate 
enough to express the emotions of so many Americans, all across the 
country, as we continue to learn more about the utter devastation of 
the Gulf Coast region by Hurricane Katrina.
  Hundreds of lives have been lost. Thousands more have been ripped 
apart, as Gulf Coast residents have lost their homes, savings, or 
possessions. A great American city, New Orleans, has been reduced to a 
ghost town. In the months ahead we will have much rebuilding to do--
although there is no doubt in my mind that the gulf coast will be 
rebuilt, and rebuilt stronger than ever before.
  We have already made great progress towards assisting the Gulf region 
here in the Senate. In the last several days we have passed over $62 
billion in emergency relief. These funds are flowing to the people who 
most need help as we speak.

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  The majority leader is working to clear a measure that would 
accelerate billions of dollars of payments to states under the 
Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, or TANF, program. The House 
passed it by voice vote last week, and we ought to do the same.
  This kind of important action is by no means found only in the United 
States Congress. In this time of crisis, it has been inspiring to see 
so many millions of Americans moving quickly to help in their fellow 
Americans' hour of need.
  Individual citizens are making a difference. I would like to share 
with my colleagues an inspiring story about a group of officers from 
the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources. Twenty-three 
officers, most of whom did not know each other when they set out, took 
12 boats to New Orleans and scoured the flooded neighborhoods to rescue 
over 200 people.
  The men who volunteered for this mission came from all over 
Kentucky--towns like Somerset, Paris, Mount Vernon, and Pippa Passes. 
They spent 3 days in New Orleans, searching flooded houses, rescuing 
survivors, and bringing food and water to many.
  Led by Captain Clark Boggs of Philpot and Captain Frank Floyd of 
Bedford, these men risked their health and safety for those they did 
not know. On the first day, they heard gunshots ring out near them. The 
toxic water they steered their boat through was a breeding ground for 
who knows how many diseases. Some of the men still bear scars and 
rashes from their mission.
  But they returned to Kentucky with happier mementoes as well--Mardi 
Gras beads, given as tokens of thanks by New Orleans residents grateful 
that they had been rescued. When they spent their nights at a local 
church, or took refuge in a school, appreciative locals brought them 
hot plates of Cajun food. Most importantly, they will never forget the 
looks of relief on the faces of the people they rescued, people who 
thought they had been forgotten.
  Let me also speak about a group of Kentucky doctors and nurses who 
flew down to the vicinity of New Orleans to provide emergency medical 
services. When they arrived, they found two gymnasiums full of people 
requiring medical attention. They assisted in setting up an emergency 
shelter that has to date treated over 7,000 patients.
  One of the nurses, Addia Wuchner of Florence, KY, is also a state 
representative. She spent seven days helping the people of New Orleans 
and told my staff about her experiences there.
  One of the hardest parts of her job was to tell the people she was 
treating, who had not been watching the news and had no idea of the 
devastation to New Orleans, that their homes were most likely flooded 
and unsalvageable. She also had the much more pleasant opportunity to 
reunite a grandfather and a granddaughter.
  St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Edgewood, KY, donated the medical 
supplies that the team brought with them. And St. Elizabeth Medical 
Center is holding several fundraising drives and collecting employee 
donations, to continue to aid the people of the Gulf Coast region. The 
group's airfare was paid for by a local Kentucky businessman named Bill 
Butler, who graciously stepped in when the medical team was unsure 
whether they would be able to afford to fly down to help.
  Let me share another story. Once upon a time, before Katrina, Charity 
Hospital in New Orleans helped the Pikeville Medical Center, in 
Pikeville, KY, set up a drug detoxification program. So when New 
Orleans needed help, the Pikeville Medical Center responded. A nurse 
named Cheryl Hickman rounded up other volunteers willing to travel down 
to the Gulf Coast area, and within hours a team of nurses and EMS 
personnel were on the road, driving ambulances stocked full of medical 
supplies.
  Stories like these, stories of generosity and charity, are so 
numerous in Kentucky that I could tell you many more. Churches, rotary 
clubs, and charitable organizations throughout the Commonwealth have 
raised hundreds of thousands of dollars. Even two little girls in my 
hometown of Louisville, KY, 12-year-old Briana O'Holleran and 11-year-
old Amy Williams, raised $60 by setting up a lemonade stand.
  Kentucky employers are also making a difference. Humana Inc., a 
health care company based in Louisville, KY, has donated $1 million to 
relief efforts--half of that to the Red Cross, and half to local relief 
agencies in the Gulf Coast who are able to use the money for food, 
clean water and other supplies and get it to the people who most need 
it.
  UPS, a major employer in Louisville, has donated $1.25 million to 
several different agencies. Also, since they are of course a shipping 
company, they have provided transportation services for relief 
agencies, and have hauled bottled water into Mississippi for evacuees.
  General Electric, which has its appliances division based in 
Louisville, has donated $6 million to the Red Cross, and their 
employees have raised another $1 million which will be matched by the 
company. They are also working to donate $10 million worth of 
generators and equipment to aid relief workers.
  And I am sure that all of my colleagues could stand up and tell us of 
similar stories from their states. Kentucky is not unique when it comes 
to the outpouring of such goodwill. By sharing these stories, I hope I 
have reminded my colleagues that the compassion of ordinary, everyday 
Americans is a stronger force than the winds of any hurricane.
  So, Mr. President, as we continue our vital work here in the Senate 
to get the Gulf Coast region back up on its feet again, I hope we will 
be guided by the giving spirit of the Kentuckians I have mentioned. 
Just as they, and so many others, are working tirelessly to restore 
hope and mend broken lives, so should we.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Oregon.
  Mr. SMITH. Mr. President, I rise to express sympathy to all those 
impacted by the disaster of Hurricane Katrina.
  Each of us, in our own way, reaches out to Senator Vitter and Senator 
Landrieu, Senator Lott, Senator Cochran, Senator Sessions and Senator 
Shelby, whose States have been ravaged by a natural disaster, frankly, 
beyond calculation and beyond the plans and the very best intentions of 
those on the ground. It is a fact that sometimes nature is bigger than 
we are. Katrina is evidence of one of those occasions.
  It has been disappointing that there has been a rush to play politics 
with a natural disaster. There has been an excess of finger-pointing 
and faultfinding. I note that President Bush yesterday bravely said 
that if you need to blame someone, blame him. I don't believe the blame 
belongs with him, but he recognizes his role in leadership. I salute 
him for his courage in simply trying to find the solutions and not 
spending wasted effort pointing fingers and placing blame.
  I represent a State that has known its share of natural disasters--
volcanos, wildfires, and a tsunami several decades ago. While Oregon is 
a long way from the Gulf Coast, we have been near in the relief effort 
and helping in recovery. I rise today to let the Senate know how proud 
I am of the response from my home State of Oregon. Oregonians have big 
hearts. With their trademark of selflessness and generosity, they have 
responded in a wide number of ways to help our friends in the South.
  The Oregon Trail Chapter of the Red Cross has a national reputation 
for being one of the first chapters to call when experienced volunteers 
are needed to respond to disasters. Since the hurricane hit, the Oregon 
Red Cross volunteers have been working around the clock to help the 
relief effort. The chapter worked quickly to set up an emergency 
evacuation center in Oregon should one be needed to house evacuees. It 
was made available. It was offered repeatedly, but it has not been 
necessary.
  The chapter this week is also holding a massive instructional program 
with the goal of training 1,000 Oregonians on disaster preparedness.
  Volunteers from the Portland-based Northwest Medical Teams are also

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playing an important role in helping with medical relief efforts and 
shipping emergency supplies. Workers from Northwest Medical Teams are 
currently in the Gulf Coast region responding with critically needed 
medical care, supplies, and logistical support.
  Mercy Corps, a humanitarian relief agency based in Portland, was one 
of the first groups on the ground providing emergency assistance. The 
Corps' response team will grow in the coming weeks as local residents 
are hired to aid in recovery efforts. Both Mercy Corps and Northwest 
Medical Teams were also among the first to rush to aid the victims of 
the December 2004 tsunami in Southeast Asia.
  I want to acknowledge the efforts of the Cascade Division of the 
Salvation Army. These volunteers have been working overtime, collecting 
donations that will go to help in the Katrina recovery.
  The outpouring of contributions from Oregonians has been 
overwhelming. I thank all of the communities, both large and small--the 
civic organizations, the high school football teams, and the campus 
groups that have worked to organize fundraising drives.
  I give a special thanks to more than 1,900 Oregon National Guard 
troops who at the request of our Governor, Ted Kulongoski, were 
mobilized to help the people of the hurricane-ravaged region.
  For nearly 10 days now, members of the Oregon Guard have been on the 
ground in New Orleans clearing roads, assessing critical needs, 
conducting rescue operations and providing security patrols.
  The Oregon Guard troops are part of a force of 72,000 Active-Duty and 
National Guard personnel who are on the ground and aboard ships 
supporting relief operations. Since the hurricane struck, our military 
men and women have been working night and day providing search and 
rescue, evacuation, and medical support. Through yesterday, over 10,000 
sorties have been flown.
  On the national level, the U.S. Coast Guard has also been working 
tirelessly to support relief efforts. As of this weekend, the Coast 
Guard has assisted in saving or evacuating over 35,000 people.
  Personnel from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have been working 
around the clock to repair the breached levees, restore navigation, and 
pump water out of New Orleans and surrounding parishes.
  In recent years we have asked a great deal from our men and women in 
the military, and time and again they have responded heroically, 
patriotically, and with professionalism.
  In addition, the U.S. Forest Service has deployed more than 2,700 
employees who are trained in rescue and response to this area. These 
teams have been putting their skills to use setting up logistics 
staging areas, distributing food products, and removing debris.
  The U.S. Department of Agriculture has also been working to get food 
to the area and provide housing for displaced people. USDA has 
delivered more than 300 trucks containing over 12 million pounds of 
food and baby food and formula products.
  The USDA's Rural Development Service has established an expedited 
process to move people into safe and secure housing. Its property 
managers are assisting families by providing them with information on 
how to access additional Government programs and services to assist 
them, such as food stamp benefits.
  As we work to recover and rebuild from Hurricane Katrina, there will 
certainly be many trying days ahead. However, I believe we can find 
comfort in the heartening response of the American people. In 
particular, I salute the people of Oregon. There are numerous examples 
of goodness, strength, and compassion as people have reached out to 
help friends, neighbors, and strangers in need.
  I salute those of my state and those of other states who are going 
the extra mile to help their fellow Americans through this terrible 
disaster. I want to suggest again that our best efforts should go to 
supporting those on the ground who are working to restore the 
hurricane-ravaged areas, and we should keep to a minimum the 
partisanship and the finger pointing that has broken out so 
unfortunately and unproductive-
ly in recent days.
  Mr. President, I thank you for the time and yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Texas.
  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, how much time is remaining on our 
side?
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. There is 13\1/2\ minutes.
  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I ask that I be notified when I have 
used 7 minutes so my colleague from Wyoming can have the remaining 6 
minutes of time.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. It will be done.
  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Thank you, Mr. President.
  Mr. President, over the past few weekends I have visited several 
hurricane relief centers in Texas. I started at the Astrodome in 
Houston, which was gearing up for the people who were coming from 
Louisiana at the time. I was struck by the number of volunteers, the 
organization of the effort in Houston, as well as the response of the 
medical community.
  There were medical facilities in place. Even complicated medical 
procedures were ongoing at places such as M.D. Anderson, where doctors 
would take patients who had been in the middle of chemotherapy and try 
to continue that chemotherapy so those patients would not lose any of 
the efforts that were being made on their behalf in Louisiana. Doctors 
at M.D. Anderson were even continuing bone marrow transplants that were 
in progress.
  Baylor College of Medicine was setting up the facilities for the 
evacuees who were arriving. There were medical units that had the 
cooperation of all the hospitals in Houston. It was truly a remarkable 
sight.
  The next weekend, I was able to go to the Convention Center in Dallas 
and see the medical operation there that was put together by the head 
of the emergency physicians at the University of Texas Southwestern 
Medical School and Parkland Hospital. They had gotten all of the 
hospitals in Dallas together to provide mental health services, 
emergency services, and any kind of services for sick children. Also, 
they were dispensing medicine on an as-needed basis in the Dallas 
Convention Center.
  Last weekend, I was able to go to Austin to see the emergency team 
that brought together the emergency personnel for the State of Texas--
the Department of Public Safety, the Texas Guard and Reserve units--
that were being helpful, including the Red Cross and the Salvation 
Army, two great volunteer organizations that have stepped right in to 
help. In some of these centers, they were the first people to start 
setting up the centers.
  Then, I went to the Austin Convention Center, where they even had set 
up a beauty shop for the evacuees who wanted, of course, to try to look 
their best as they were trying to get their lives together and 
determine what they were going to do until they are able to return to 
New Orleans or other places in Louisiana.
  We have seen many of the emergency facilities, even though, of 
course, Texas was not in this storm. But Texas has had an emergency 
crisis of its own; and that is in the education that is now being 
required for the children coming into the school systems, as well as 
trying to get help for the ongoing medical needs that will be required 
for approximately 250,000 evacuees from Louisiana, a few from 
Mississippi, and trying to make sure these costs are covered by the 
Federal Government.
  While Texans have opened their hearts and their homes and their 
schools, we do not think they should have to fund all of this from 
State coffers or local coffers because, frankly, the local schools are 
already very strapped for funds and they cannot afford this expense.
  Likewise, the cities are not able to afford the overtime expenses of 
all the police who are being required and the firemen who are doing the 
emergency medical services. So I am working on

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legislation right now that would try to get money into these entities 
that do not have the cash flow to accept all of these people on an 
emergency basis, and to do it on an expedited basis here in Congress.
  There are, at this time, between 30,000 and 40,000 new students 
coming into the Texas school systems. This is a huge increase in a very 
short time. Trying to match the students with the kind of curriculum 
that has been ongoing in the Texas schools is a challenge. Texas is 
trying to meet that challenge in the best way for all concerned.
  I am hoping Congress will act very quickly to alleviate some of these 
early problems in getting the funding where it needs to be. For 
instance, there is no FEMA money for education expenses. So the bill I 
hope we could pass this week will allow FEMA, through the Department of 
Education, to immediately start reimbursing the schools for the costs 
of opening these new schools and the temporary facilities that are 
being required, including the schoolbooks and school supplies that are 
being required to help these new students, who are already entering 2 
weeks late because Texas schools start the last week of August, 
sometimes the third week in August.
  We need to bring these children in and get them going in an expedited 
way. I am asking my colleagues to help me pass, on a quick basis, an 
ability for FEMA to fund education expenses and to waive some laws that 
will allow them to be placed where they can best be placed without 
regard to the McKinney Act, just for a temporary time.
  This legislation will sunset at the end of this school year, so it 
will not be permanent. I hope we can pass it on an expedited basis to 
try to meet the needs of these students and my State, which has been so 
generous and has offered so much help to these people, which we want to 
continue to do and we will continue to do. But I want the Federal 
Government to make it easier on these governmental agencies regarding 
the expenses incurred by the communities that are doing so much.
  We want this to be the model for response to future emergencies, not 
one where other States look at what has happened in our State and say: 
Well, if the Federal Government is not going to step up on education 
expenses and medical care, then it will be difficult to take in future 
emergency victims. So that is what we are trying to do.
  Our hearts go out to all of the people who are affected by this 
disaster. We are going to do our part. I am hoping Congress will act 
soon to help us do the right thing.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator has now used 7 minutes.
  Mrs. HUTCHISON. Mr. President, I yield the floor to my colleague from 
Wyoming.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Wyoming is recognized.
  Mr. THOMAS. Mr. President, I thank my colleague from Texas for the 
time.
  I join all of us in expressing our condolences and our concerns for 
what has happened in the New Orleans area. Certainly Senator Vitter's 
discussions yesterday helped us understand a little better what the 
situation is there, what the difficulties are, and what our 
responsibilities are to do something about that as quickly as we 
possibly can.
  We certainly first want to again offer our condolences to the 
families of those who perished. I support those who continue to live in 
the hurricane-affected areas.
  What we have seen is, obviously, one of the most terrible natural 
disasters in our Nation's history. We have also seen, fortunately, the 
generous spirit of our Nation thrive in a time of confusion and loss. 
The giving nature of the American people has been displayed and 
continues to be displayed. We should be very proud of that.
  I am especially impressed with the people of Wyoming who have opened 
their hearts and their homes to help the hurricane victims. You never 
know when someone is going to be in the path of a similar storm.
  The objective now, of course, is to get the victims back on their 
feet, and to provide for their basic needs, to bring some semblance of 
normalcy to the situation there. This is going to be an ongoing effort. 
It is going to be ongoing, but it also demands immediate attention. 
Progress is being made hour by hour, day by day. I think it is a 
testament to the courage of the people throughout the Gulf Coast. It 
will take years to rebuild New Orleans and the other areas, but I am 
confident there will be a thriving economy again in that area.
  Over the next few weeks, our Nation will show, once again, why we are 
the envy of the world. We will prove that no matter what the obstacles 
are that are before us, we can join together to overcome them, even if 
it is Mother Nature. The stories of heroism and fortitude will continue 
to trickle down, but soon, like the water that has destroyed so much, 
that trickle was evolve into a wave--a wave of construction, a wave of 
rebirth.
  As we showed on that bright September morning 4 years ago, this 
Nation will rise out of the ashes and rebuild the Gulf Coast. I join my 
Wyomingites to say we are sorry for what happened, but we look forward 
to working with you to restore what you have lost.
  I am particularly proud of Wyoming's military. We have deployed 72 
people in support of Hurricane Katrina relief efforts. We have sent 
four helicopters with 19 people, two C-130s delivering equipment. We 
have sent AirVac nurses and 13 security police from the naval air 
station. So we are very pleased to be able to help. We need to provide 
the help.
  There are lots of things being talked about. We can talk about tax 
relief, particularly as it provides relief for those things being given 
there. TANF, of course, has something to do with education and health 
care. We can do something about insurance, private insurance, to make 
that more efficient. Charitable giving is one of the things we can look 
at to ensure that is as useful as can be. School funding, which has 
already been mentioned here, is very important, whether it be there or 
wherever the children are. Medicaid is one area we need to take a 
strong look at to make sure it is available to everyone who needs it. 
Certainly, we need to take a look at emergency funding.
  There are many items with which we are challenged. They are going to 
be difficult, but they are there. We can accomplish what we need to do, 
and that is to help these people in this circumstance. As we do it, 
however, I hope we remember that, as in the case of our family, when we 
have emergency needs, we have to look at some other areas to cut back a 
little bit. As this emergency continues to go on, our life needs to go 
on. Government needs to go on with its essential services. At the same 
time, there are some things we are doing in the Government that could 
be set aside and could, indeed, be changed so that we can offset some 
of the costs that go into this effort. That will be necessary.
  I send our condolences and accept and join with my associates to take 
on the challenge of dealing with the needs of the people in the Gulf 
Coast.
  I yield the floor.

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