[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 153 (2007), Part 4]
[House]
[Pages 5461-5468]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           BLUE DOG COALITION

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under the Speaker's announced policy of 
January 18, 2007, the gentleman from Arkansas (Mr. Ross) is recognized 
for 60 minutes as the designee of the majority leader.
  Mr. ROSS. Mr. Speaker, this evening, as every Tuesday evening, I rise 
on behalf of the 43 member strong fiscally conservative Democratic Blue 
Dog Coalition. We are a group of fiscally conservative Democrats that 
are doing our best to restore common sense and fiscal discipline to our 
Federal Government. Part of that is accountability.
  This evening I am pleased to be joined by another gentleman from 
Arkansas, Mr. Berry, from Arkansas's First Congressional District, as 
we talk about restoring not only common sense and fiscal discipline to 
our national government, but accountability to our Federal agencies.
  Mr. Speaker, a week ago, Saturday, February 24, 2007, at about three 
in the afternoon, not one but two tornadoes devastated the rural delta 
county of Desha County. The county seat is Arkansas City. It was 
spared. McGehee was spared for the most part. But Dumas, a town of 
about 5,000 people, was hit, and hit hard, as you can see from this 
photo provided to me by Agnes Ross at the Dumas Clarion. This is what 
was left of the Fred's Dollar Store. My district director's dad was in 
the meat locker of the grocery store, Matt Butcher, next door, which 
was also destroyed. In fact, Mr. Speaker, 150 homes were either 
destroyed or heavily damaged. Depending on whose numbers you want to 
rely on, somewhere between 600 and 800 workers were displaced from 
work, because wherever they worked was destroyed or heavily damaged. 
That community of Dumas and much of Desha County went without power for 
five days.
  It was bad enough that the Governor cut short his trip to the 
National Governor's Association meeting here in Washington and flew 
home, and I was privileged to join him in going to Dumas and spending 
the afternoon visiting folks and reassuring folks that help was on the 
way. It was bad enough that the Governor called out 150 members of the 
Arkansas National Guard.
  That was February 24, 2007. More than a week later, the President 
still has not declared Desha County a Federal disaster area and FEMA 
has not responded to my request to move 150 mobile homes that were 
purchased for Hurricane Katrina to Dumas and Desha County to be used 
for temporary housing while these good folks in this forgotten delta 
county get their lives put back together and rebuild their homes.
  Mr. Speaker, this is one example of the damage. Again 150 National 
Guard soldiers called out; 150 people's homes either destroyed or 
severely damaged; 600 to 800 workers temporarily displaced from their 
job because wherever they worked was destroyed or heavily damaged; no 
power for 5 days. And yet the Federal Emergency Management Agency says 
that this forgotten delta county, Desha County, is not worthy of a 
Federal disaster declaration. They want to talk about all these rules 
and regulations and all this bureaucratic this and bureaucratic that.
  You would expect that from the IRS, Mr. Speaker, you would expect 
that from most Federal agencies. But when I think of the Federal 
Emergency Management Agency, when I think of FEMA, I think of first 
responder. I think of one Federal agency that should be able to cut 
through the bureaucratic red tape and get something done. If FEMA can't 
do it, no Federal agency can do it, and FEMA is not.
  I guess what infuriates me more is a week after these two tornadoes 
struck Dumas and Desha County, and here is another good photo of one of 
the houses that was destroyed, we can't convince FEMA that that home is 
destroyed, but we believe it was destroyed, it is certainly 
uninhabitable, but what gets me is, a week ago Saturday, the tornadoes 
hit Dumas. The President has yet to declare it a Federal disaster area, 
FEMA has yet to help with temporary housing, or anything else, for that 
matter, and yet the following Saturday, and my heart goes out to the 
people in Alabama and Georgia, we were fortunate in Dumas and Desha 
County, we did not have a loss of life. We did have a couple of dozen 
injuries, some of them very serious, but the good Lord was working 
overtime in Dumas, Arkansas, a week ago Saturday. There is no doubt 
about that. People go through and tour this town and they scratch their 
head. How in the world did no one die? And for those who did die in 
those tornados that came about a week later in Georgia and Alabama, our 
heart goes out for those people.
  But it really galled me to see the director of FEMA with the 
President in Alabama and Georgia holding hands singing ``Kumbaya'' and 
talking about the new and improved FEMA. The new and improved FEMA has 
forgotten this delta county.
  And this story gets better, and is hard to believe. But you can see 
here, this is one of the 150 homes that is either destroyed or badly 
damaged. Dumas is a rural community. It is not like there are a lot of 
rental houses available there. People, even those with insurance, need 
a place to live while they get their life put back together and their 
homes rebuilt, which could take up to a year. And this story gets 
better, or a better word, this story gets more tragic. Some of you are 
aware of this, Mr. Speaker.
  When Hurricane Katrina hit the gulf coast in August 2005, one of the 
first things FEMA did was they ordered

[[Page 5462]]

thousands of brand new, fully furnished mobile homes; not the camper 
trailers. We are talking brand new, fully-furnished mobile homes, 14 to 
16 foot wide, 60 foot long, built-in microwaves, coffee tables, end 
tables, sofas, dining room sets, built-in central heat and air with the 
unit ready to drop out of the back. Most of them are equipped, or 
filled, I should say, with Ashley furniture.
  Hope, Arkansas, because it is the old proving grounds from World War 
II, and it is an old military airport and they had some inactive 
runways and tarmacs, well, FEMA approached the City of Hope, which is 
also in my district. Hope used to be known as the birthplace of 
President Clinton. Now we are known as the largest trailer park in the 
world.
  So FEMA entered into an agreement with the City of Hope to store 
these mobile homes in Hope. Not store. Actually, it was to be a FEMA 
staging area where they would transition through there on their way 
from wherever they purchased them to the gulf coast region. That was 
shortly after August 2005, Hurricane Katrina.
  They kept delivering these mobile homes to Hope. They kept bringing 
more and more mobile homes to Hope. This an aerial photo that I took 
Saturday. This is current. I took this Saturday at the Hope Airport 
from a small plane. This is a current aerial photo.
  All these white things, those are mobile homes that were purchased 
for Hurricane Katrina victims August 2005. And the staging area quickly 
became a storage area where more and more mobile homes arrived, but 
none of them ever left. Why? Because, at the time, FEMA said, oh, we 
don't place mobile homes in flood plains.
  Well, they knew that they don't place mobile homes in flood plains 
before they bought them. And guess what? Everybody that lost their home 
in Hurricane Katrina and needed a home lived in a floodplain. So these 
homes were never placed.
  Then President Bush was at the Democratic Caucus last month at 
Williamsburg, and he and I talked about this after the chairman of the 
Homeland Security Committee, Bennie Thompson, questioned him 
specifically about these mobile homes, and the President told me, we 
are saving them for future disasters.
  In Dumas, Arkansas, a week ago Saturday, the people were struck not 
by one but by two tornadoes; 150 homes destroyed or badly damaged; 600 
to 800 workers out of work because wherever they worked has been 
destroyed or heavily damaged; 150 members of the Arkansas National 
Guard called out; and yet, that was a week ago Saturday, on Monday, the 
Governor and I toured Dumas and on Tuesday at 9 a.m. in a conference 
call I asked David Paulison, the Director of FEMA, to release 150 of 
these 8,420 mobile homes. That is how many are currently at the Hope 
Airport from the photo taken Saturday. There is 8,420 of these parked 
at the airport in Hope today.
  I respectfully requested 150 of these be moved to Dumas, which is 
only 3 hours away, to provide temporary housing for the people of Dumas 
and Desha County while they rebuild their homes.

                              {time}  1800

  I am still waiting on an answer. So I called him back again Thursday. 
He still couldn't give me an answer. They still have not declared this 
forgotten delta county a Federal disaster, and they have yet to move a 
single one of these mobile homes. If what I saw in Dumas is not a 
Federal disaster, Mr. Speaker, I doubt we will ever see another Federal 
disaster again.
  And, Mr. Speaker, if they refuse to move 150 of these 8,420 mobile 
homes from Hope to Dumas to help folks, isn't that what FEMA is 
supposed to be in the business of doing? Then do you really believe any 
of these will ever be moved for the public good to help people? It is 
reprehensible; I am appalled by it. I am ashamed of our government, Mr. 
Speaker. This is a symbol of what is wrong with FEMA. This is a symbol 
of why so many people in this country have given up on their Federal 
Government.
  And the story gets better. Shortly after Hurricane Katrina and all 
these mobile homes showed up in Hope and they weren't moving them to 
the people that needed them on the gulf coast, Mr. Speaker, I spoke up 
and brought a photo similar to this to the House floor and I said, 
FEMA, if you do not move these homes to the people who need them on the 
gulf coast, they are going to start sinking into the cow pasture, the 
hay meadow, thinking that would get FEMA off high center and they would 
start moving them to the people that needed them. What did FEMA do? 
They showed up with $7 million worth of gravel to put under them. 
Folks, you cannot make this up; it is too unbelievable.
  And so if I appear frustrated this evening, I am because a week ago 
Monday, Governor Beebe and I toured Dumas and the Back Gate community. 
And in Back Gate, at least a week ago, and perhaps tonight, there were 
30 people crowded in a metal building, calling it home because they 
have no place to live. I talked to Agnes Ross at the Dumas Clarion 
earlier today and she said she ran into somebody on the streets of 
Dumas earlier today, an elderly woman that had no place to go, no place 
to live, and yet 8,420 brand new, fully furnished mobile homes are 
sitting there at the airport in Hope, Arkansas, 3 hours from Dumas.
  When the Blue Dog Coalition talks about restoring accountability to 
our government and making Federal agencies answer for their action, or 
a lack of action, this is a good example. This is about as good as it 
gets. And, Mr. Speaker, I am not here to beat up the President or beat 
up the director of FEMA. I tried for a week to go through the proper 
channels and get this done, but for the life of me I am imploring the 
President and the director of FEMA, Mr. Speaker, to move just a few of 
those mobile homes from Hope to Dumas to help these folks, provide them 
temporary housing while they try to get their lives put back together 
and their homes rebuilt.
  Marion Berry, a Congressman from the First District of Arkansas, is 
from Gillette. He doesn't live but a few miles from Dumas. He knows 
these people, too. This storm affected his area, and he is very aware 
of what is going on and the lack of attention from FEMA. At this time I 
would yield to him. I want to thank him for joining me this evening to 
talk about trying to help the folks of Dumas and Desha County, this 
forgotten delta county.
  Mr. BERRY. I thank the gentleman from south Arkansas, and I certainly 
appreciate his leadership in this matter.
  I would also encourage everyone that can hear my voice to keep in our 
hearts and minds and certainly in your prayers our men and women in 
uniform, especially those on the battlefield this evening. Reach out to 
them and their families and let them know that you understand and 
appreciate the sacrifice and commitment they make out of the goodness 
of their hearts.
  My esteemed colleague from south Arkansas is absolutely correct. We 
have these horrible tornados almost every year in Arkansas. We had two 
in the First Congressional District that I am privileged to represent 
last year. We have had as many as a hundred in one day all across 
Arkansas.
  I have served in this Congress since 1997, and from 1997 to January 
of 2001 we had a director of FEMA that remains distinguished to this 
day and always will. His name was James Lee Witt. He knew how to run an 
agency. He didn't make excuses. When a tornado hit, you didn't have to 
call FEMA, you didn't have to call the director, you didn't have to 
call anybody. They would just show up, Johnny-on-the-spot. They knew 
what they were doing. They were trained. They could make decisions. 
They helped people start putting their lives together. They helped 
communities and local governments clean up the mess. They provided the 
necessary financing to get the economy going again. They worked with 
the public schools to get them repaired and back in order.
  Today, FEMA is a worse disaster than the storms. If they show up at 
all, which they haven't in Desha County, and my colleague, Mr. Ross, is 
absolutely right, I just live right across the

[[Page 5463]]

river from Desha County, it is part of my home. Today, if they show up 
at all, it is for a photo op. I saw this past Saturday on CNN, FEMA has 
a new truck, a communications truck. They were so proud. They were 
explaining that this communications truck, and I would love to know how 
much it cost, was the secret to their success because they were going 
to be able to use that truck to take pictures and broadcast them back 
to FEMA headquarters and they would get the same information they could 
have gotten from CNN 3 hours ago. All of this would be hysterically 
funny if it was not so tragic.
  This is not a funding issue. It is just a simple matter of 
incompetence from the top to the bottom. This administration simply 
does not know how to run a government agency.
  I have not talked to Mr. Paulison. I have talked to him on previous 
occasions, and he defines the word ``bureaucrat,'' which is a sad thing 
to have to say about anyone. It is the job of the Congress to hold 
these people accountable.
  I have had conversations with Secretary Chertoff. And he assures me 
that these trailers that are down in Hope, we are going to take care of 
those. This was over a year ago. He appeared before the Appropriations 
Committee and explained that in just a few months these were all going 
to be moved out and everything was going to be wonderful. They are just 
sitting down there going to ruin. Nobody is using them. But they 
wouldn't let the victims of tornados in my district last year use them. 
They won't let the good people of Desha County use them this year. This 
just doesn't make any sense.
  It is the job of the Congress, and that is the reason my colleagues 
and I are here this evening, to begin the process to hold these 
incompetent bureaucrats accountable for the terrible way they are 
running this agency. For crying out loud, if you can't do anything 
else, give us a ``no'' answer. Tell us something. Don't just let it 
stay out there and twist in the wind.
  I can tell you this: You don't have to be all broke out in brilliance 
to look at these pictures or drive through that community and know a 
terrible disaster took place, and they are deserving of the help of the 
Federal Government. What a sad thing it is to go from an agency and a 
government only 6 years ago that would come to the aid of the people 
when a disaster happened, to this horrible mess that we call FEMA today 
that is so incompetent all they can do is spend money where it doesn't 
help the people. It is time that they at least appeared before this 
Congress and make some kind of a pathetic explanation as to why they 
are operating the way they are at this time. And let's hope that by 
some stroke the administration and the White House, who is ultimately 
in charge, will at least have the credibility and feel responsible 
enough to get control of that agency, because we know there will be 
more disasters that will happen to the American people, and we are 
going to need help from our Federal Government.
  We cannot continue to operate this way. What a sad thing it is to see 
this agency and the way they treat people who have had their lives 
destroyed, their jobs destroyed, their homes destroyed, and yet they 
are not even deemed worthy by the director of FEMA or the Secretary of 
Homeland Security of a little bit of help and a little bit of 
recognition by the Federal Government so they can get some help on 
their own.
  And can you imagine, if the Secretary of Homeland Security can't see 
that FEMA works, can you imagine the mess that the rest of Homeland 
Security is in? What a terrifying thought that these people are in 
charge of anything, but certainly in charge of our homeland security 
and in charge of the very Federal agency that is charged with bringing 
assistance and helping the people when these tragedies take place.
  I would join my colleague in recognizing tragedies that took place in 
Alabama and Georgia and the loss of life and how terrible that was, and 
we hope they get treated better. They certainly deserve to be treated 
well. They deserve all the help it is possible to give them at this 
time.
  Let's hope that we are not back here in 2 weeks to hear stories from 
Alabama and Georgia about how, well, FEMA came and they had their 
picture made with us and they gave us a big hug, and then they left and 
nothing happened. They deserve better. And let's hope that they get 
better. We also deserve to have help for the people in Desha County in 
south Arkansas in the First Congressional District. They deserve to be 
treated better, also.
  And, Mr. Speaker, I can tell you that my colleague, Mr. Ross, will 
not rest, nor will the Arkansas delegation, nor will the Governor of 
the State of Arkansas rest until we see the recovery taking place and 
the wonderful community of Dumas, Arkansas, begin to be restored and 
the economy begins to prosper again, and the people begin to put their 
lives back together.
  I thank my colleague for his leadership, and I will yield back.
  Mr. ROSS. I thank the gentleman from Arkansas for joining me this 
evening and talking about the lack of accountability within the Federal 
Emergency Management Agency.
  To recount, February 24, 2007, a week ago Saturday, not one, but two 
tornadoes devastated the town of Dumas and the Back Gate community in 
Desha County. The Governor declared it a State disaster, called out 150 
members of the Arkansas National Guard who were there for nearly a 
week. It took crews of more than a hundred working for 5 days to 
restore electricity to that delta county. Some 600 to 800 people remain 
out of work because of the damage done to their workplace. And yet here 
we are, a week ago Saturday in Dumas, horrible tornados. And the ironic 
thing is that FEMA has a staging area with 8,420 brand new fully 
furnished mobile homes 3 hours away, filled with Ashley furniture and 
built-in microwaves ready to be set up, and the mayor and the county 
judge, Marion Gill, the mayor of Dumas, Mark McElroy, the county judge 
in Desha County, they have got sites available. The zoning is cleared 
with city water, with water and electrical and sewer hook-ups, and yet 
FEMA, which is supposed to be in the business of helping people, 
refused to move a single one of these to the more than 150 people who 
lost their home, like this family right here.

                              {time}  1815

  This is one of the 150 homes that were either totally destroyed or 
heavily damaged. Yes, some of these folks had insurance, but yes, we 
have 8,420 mobile homes 3 hours away that are not doing anybody any 
good sitting at the airport in a hay meadow. They were purchased to 
help people.
  There is no place to rent in Dumas. These folks in Dumas and Desha 
County need a place to live temporarily. We are not asking that they 
give these mobile homes to them. We are asking for temporary 
assistance. That is what FEMA is in the business of or supposed to be. 
Allow these folks to temporarily live in 150 of these 8,420 brand new 
mobile homes, filled with Ashley furniture.
  They are not doing anybody good in Hope. Let us get them moving, Mr. 
Speaker, to Dumas, Arkansas, and let these folks in Dumas who lost 
their homes or had their homes heavily damaged live in them temporarily 
while they get their life put back together and rebuild their homes.
  Mr. Speaker, this is not the first time we have raised this issue. 
Here is the timeline, talk about accountability and restoring 
accountability to our government: Saturday, February 24, two tornadoes 
devastated the communities of Dumas and Back Gate in Desha County. 
Monday, February 26, I surveyed the damage on the ground and in the air 
along with Governor Beebe and other elected officials. Governor Beebe 
named Desha County a State disaster area and announced his plans to 
request a Federal disaster declaration.
  Tuesday, February 27, I held a conference call with FEMA Director 
David Paulison, along with Senator Lincoln from Arkansas and staff for 
Senator Pryor. In the call, I conveyed my support of Governor Beebe and 
requested

[[Page 5464]]

FEMA expedite their decision and action as well as encouraged FEMA to 
use 150 manufactured homes from this supply of 8,420 of them from Hope, 
Arkansas, just 3 hours away, for the families without shelter in Desha 
County.
  Later Tuesday, my staff talked with FEMA again regarding the status 
of the disaster declaration, and they expressed that they did not read 
the laws as we did and that they are still working with Arkansas to 
gather information. In other words, the bureaucracy began.
  Wednesday, February 28, I joined with both senators, Senator Lincoln 
and Senator Pryor from Arkansas in sending a letter to President Bush 
and FEMA Director Paulison supporting Governor Beebe's request for a 
Federal disaster declaration.
  Thursday, March 1, 2007, I again talked with FEMA Director Paulison 
regarding the lack of a response and movement of these mobile homes 
from Hope and expressed my displeasure with his office. It had been 6 
days since the tornadoes and the communities were just beginning to 
regain electricity in parts of the town. At that point, FEMA says the 
reason for not declaring a disaster area is the high rate of insured 
homes and the fact that the State is capable of taking care of the 
damage.
  Supposedly, they told CNN, FEMA did, that the State has a surplus 
this year, and they do not need their help. Well, Mr. Speaker, that is 
the craziest thing I have ever heard of. The city and county is a very 
rural area. It is in the delta region. They lost half their sales tax 
base when a big retail store left about a year ago. They had a Fred's 
Dollar Store and a grocery store left, and they have been destroyed. 
They have, at least for a short period of time, perhaps up to a year, 
lost much of their tax base. At the same time, they are struggling to 
pay for a new county hospital and new city hospital there in Dumas, and 
they are not getting any help from the one agency that we thought was 
supposed to be there to help us in the time of need, the Federal 
Emergency Management Agency.
  Friday, March 2, 2007, I again joined with Senators Lincoln and Pryor 
to send another letter to FEMA in support of Governor Beebe and the 
immediate need for mobile homes in Desha County.
  Saturday, March 3, during an address in Memphis, Tennessee, at the 
55th Annual Mid-South Farm and Cotton Gin show, I commented on the lack 
of response from FEMA one week after the tornadoes.
  I went to Hope, and I stood in front of these 8,420 mobile homes to 
highlight the waste of taxpayers' money, the fact that these brand new, 
fully furnished manufactured homes are just 3 hours away from Dumas, 
yet they are not being put to good use. They are not helping the people 
some 3 hours away in Dumas.
  Then, Tuesday, March 5, 2007, that is today, I joined Senators 
Lincoln and Pryor in sending a letter in support of Governor Beebe's 
request to the U.S. Small Business Administration to request small 
business disaster loans be administered in Desha County to help the 25 
businesses which were destroyed and the more than 800 employees who are 
now without a job or a place to work nearby, some 600 to 800 depending 
on which day it is and which businesses are able to get back up.
  My office hand delivered letters from me and photos I took, this 
photo right here. We delivered an 8x10 copy of this photo along with a 
letter today to President Bush, to FEMA Director Paulison, and to the 
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Chertoff, making one final 
plea to assist these folks in this forgotten delta county.
  Well, we have gone on long enough on this, Mr. Speaker, but I think 
it is important. As members of the Blue Dogs, we talk about 
accountability, and you cannot talk about accountability and the lack 
of it without talking about FEMA. Again 8,420 brand new mobile homes 
sitting there at the Hope airport, not doing anybody any good, and I 
have got 150 homes either totally destroyed or damaged like one 3 hours 
away.
  It has been more than a week. FEMA refuses to send a single mobile 
home to assist these folks. If they are not going to move them 3 hours 
away to a disaster area, Mr. Speaker, I can assure you these mobile 
homes will never be put to the public good. They will never go to help 
people if they are not going to help people 3 hours away in their time 
of need.
  I am, once again, Mr. Speaker, imploring the President and the 
director of FEMA and the Secretary of Homeland Security to do the right 
thing and to get some of these mobile homes moving to Dumas, where 
tonight 30 people are living in a metal building. They need our help, 
Mr. Speaker.
  That is what the Blue Dog Coalition is all about. We are about trying 
to restore common sense and fiscal discipline to our national 
government, and we are about accountability.
  In fact, Mr. Speaker, we have what is called the Iraq War 
Accountability Act, and we are going to be talking about that more this 
evening.
  Mr. Speaker, as you walk the halls of Congress, it is easy to know 
when you are walking by an office that belongs to a member of the 
fiscally conservative Democratic Blue Dog Coalition. Why? Because you 
will see this poster. A poster reminding Members of Congress and 
reminding the people who walk the halls of Congress that our Nation is 
in debt.
  Today, the U.S. national debt is $8,811,969,377,773 and some change, 
and if you divide that by every man, woman and child in America, your 
share, Mr. Speaker, of the national debt is $29,245. It is time that 
this Nation get its fiscal house in order, and one of the ways we do 
that is by restoring accountability to our Federal agencies, which is 
what this business with FEMA is all about, trying to restore 
accountability and common sense and cutting through the bureaucracy and 
red tape to help people in their time of need.
  At this time, it is a pleasure for me to yield to my friend from the 
State of Ohio (Mr. Wilson). We are pleased to have Mr. Wilson as a new 
Member of the fiscally conservative Democratic Blue Dog Coalition, and 
at this time, I recognize Mr. Wilson.
  Mr. WILSON of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, it is hard to believe when the 
Katrina accident happened that we were out of line as much as we were 
and not responsive, as has been indicated here this evening, and it is 
even harder to believe that after the correction of that, we are back 
in the same boat again.
  I know they changed FEMA directors. Mr. Brown was terminated and went 
on. And then now we have a new group of people running FEMA, but it 
does not seem to be any better.
  Mr. Speaker, the Blue Dogs stand for accountability. We stand for 
accountability in a lot of different ways. We feel that there are some 
truly misguided priorities that are hurting our country and hurting us 
as people here.
  Mr. Speaker, just Sunday evening, millions of Americans watched ``60 
Minutes.'' We heard what the Blue Dogs have been talking about for more 
than a decade.
  In the report, the U.S. Comptroller General, the Nation's top 
accountant, urged people to wake up to our budget crisis before it is 
too late. These are his words, Mr. Speaker.
  ``What's going on right now is we're spending more money than we 
make.'' Couldn't be much more simple. ``We're charging it to a credit 
card and expecting our grandchildren to pay.''
  Mr. Speaker, that is absolutely wrong. The Comptroller General is 
absolutely right. Our fiscal mess is outrageous, and we as Blue Dogs 
stand for accountability. Reckless budgets and irresponsible spending 
has got us into the fix we are in, and now it is the responsibility of 
this Congress to help us get out.
  The administration has had misguided priorities that have been 
painfully clear. They send pallets of cash to Iraq while our veterans 
at home suffer in dirty, broken-down facilities, not getting the 
medical care that they need after putting their life on the line for 
our country. Recent reports of the deplorable conditions and the roach-
infested rooms at Walter Reed are an outrage, and they are 
unacceptable.

[[Page 5465]]

Mr. Speaker, it is an understatement to say that our brave veterans 
deserve so much more than the way they are being treated.
  We must hold this administration accountable for this reckless 
approach that has allowed millions of dollars to go missing in Iraq 
while our brave young men and women who need proper medical care have 
gone without it. We must provide real oversight to keep this from 
happening again, just like we need to provide real oversight as we work 
for a responsible budget.
  Mr. Speaker, what will happen if we do not clean up this fiscal mess? 
We only need to listen to the words of the Comptroller General again in 
last Sunday's ``60 Minutes'' presentation. He said, ``We suffer from a 
fiscal cancer. It's growing within'' our country. ``And if we do not 
treat it, it could have catastrophic consequences for'' America.
  As Blue Dogs, Mr. Speaker, we will shine a bright light on this 
cancer and nurse our budget back to health. Our future and the future 
of our children and our grandchildren depend on it.
  Mr. ROSS. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Ohio (Mr. 
Wilson), an important member of the fiscally conservative Blue Dog 
Coalition, for sharing your thoughts with us this evening as we try to, 
Mr. Speaker, talk about the need to restore fiscal discipline and 
accountability to our government. You gave a good example of putting an 
end to the debt and the deficit spending, and we have had examples this 
evening about restoring accountability to government, and the 
accountability and lack of it within FEMA.
  We are going to hear about other areas where we need to restore 
accountability within our Federal Government this evening, and we will 
talk some about the Blue Dog Coalition's Iraq War Accountability Act.
  We support our troops. In fact, we support them so much we want to 
make sure this $12 million an hour that is being sent to Iraq of your 
hardearned tax money, Mr. Speaker, is going to support our men and 
women in uniform. Unfortunately, as we have learned, much of it is not, 
and that is why we have this legislation, H.R. 97, the Iraq War 
Accountability Act.
  Mr. Speaker, if you have got any comments, questions or concerns for 
us, you can e-mail us at [email protected]. That is 
[email protected].
  At this time, Mr. Speaker, I yield to another member of the fiscally 
conservative Democratic Blue Dog Coalition, the gentleman from 
California (Mr. Costa).
  Mr. COSTA. Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the gentleman from Arkansas 
(Mr. Ross), my good friend, who every day is working to represent the 
constituents of his State.
  I share, too, the concerns with the lack of accountability that has 
taken place over the last 4 years as we have put America's finest men 
and women in uniform in harm's way, fighting this war on terrorism, but 
specifically in Iraq and Afghanistan, and only to find that too often 
we have not done the necessary planning, we have not put the necessary 
resources in place nor have we taken the time to ensure that their work 
is focused on in a way that brings results, the kind of results that 
all Americans as taxpayers want to see when we invest in our Nation's 
interests.
  The Iraq Accountability Act is an important step to try to reinstate 
credibility through this war effort, and therefore, we are urging our 
colleagues throughout the House to embrace this effort. This is not a 
partisan issue. This is all about making sure that when we invest $25 
billion in reconstruction, when we need that kind of investment here at 
home, that it, in fact, is not taken in by sole source contracting 
single bids; that, in fact, that the work actually takes place at a 
level of quality so that the Iraqi government or the citizens can, in 
fact, benefit from that investment of infrastructure.

                              {time}  1830

  We just saw recently about the construction of a police station that 
was so shoddily built with U.S. taxpayers dollars that, in fact, it has 
been deemed unusable.
  So as fellow Blue Dog members, we really urge in a bipartisan basis 
for us as a House to come together. We are the people's House, after 
all, and it is important that we put partisan politics at the water's 
edge. We are in a real mess in Iraq. There is no doubt about that. I 
have every hope, as do most Americans, that, in fact, we do the right 
thing in ensuring that this effort takes place in a way that brings our 
American troops home as safely and as quickly as possible.
  However, if this surge is not successful, as I asked Secretary of 
State Condoleezza Rice in the Foreign Affairs Committee just 2 weeks 
ago, that I think it is absolutely critical that we understand what our 
backup plan is. I think the American public is getting tired of us 
pursuing these efforts without the sort of time invested effort that is 
going to ensure that if this effort is not successful, we have a backup 
and that we are not simply winging it, because I think too often that 
has been the history of the recent past in this engagement.
  Mr. Speaker, and my colleague, Congressman Mike Ross, I would like to 
shift this effort of accountability and transparency back to our 
Nation's shores. I was very moved by the comments Congressman Mike Ross 
made when he talked about the devastating impact of those tornados in 
his district back in Arkansas. I saw the devastation on television 
shortly after it occurred.
  I e-mailed my friend, Congressman Mike Ross, and asked him how it was 
there. He talked about the horrific challenges his constituents were 
facing, and I felt for him. I felt for him because whether we like it 
or not, natural disasters occur throughout the country, whether it is 
in Florida, whether it is Katrina in Louisiana and Mississippi. I know, 
because just in January we had a similar natural disaster in 
California, called the freeze.
  This devastating freeze has now impacted the State of California over 
$1.3 billion. Now, when you have a freeze that impacts communities in 
many counties such as we had in California in January, it doesn't take 
on the same sort of graphic visuals that a tornado or a hurricane does, 
but it is the worst freeze we have had in over 10 years. Governor 
Schwarzenegger immediately declared the State a disaster, an area 
designated as 31 counties eligible for State aid, and the State has 
been putting money in there.
  We have signed a bipartisan letter to the President asking for 
Federal support. The estimate is that the freeze has affected not only 
$1.3 billion in losses, and those numbers are adding up, but over 
12,000 farm workers, as well as farmers, have been impacted. The 
livelihood of these farmers, these farm workers and the communities 
they live in have threatened the economies of these towns where we have 
had 50 percent, 70 percent unemployment just in the last 4 to 6 weeks.
  I was talking to a good friend of mine, Sarah Reyes, who heads up the 
community foodbank back in Fresno County. She told me that in the last 
6 weeks they have fed over 91,000 families, 91,000 families that don't 
have jobs, that are out of work. But still, even though we have sent 
this letter, the Governor made the declaration, 31 counties have been 
impacted, the administration has yet to declare the freeze a Federal 
disaster.
  So you ask why, why is our Governor, Governor Schwarzenegger's 
request being ignored? Why is the letter that has been signed by both 
Democrats and Republicans among the California congressional delegation 
being disregarded? Why is the administration acting so casually about a 
situation that puts families out of work and family businesses at risk?
  Mr. President, the freeze may not make the sort of pictures that we 
have seen in Florida or in Arkansas or in Louisiana or in Mississippi; 
but I can tell you, if you come to those communities and visit and meet 
with those farm workers who are out of work, you talk to those farmers 
and their families who have invested their entire lives in their family 
farm, you will see just as dramatic an impact as any devastation of any 
other natural disaster. So I think it is time for the administration to 
focus on the accountability

[[Page 5466]]

in its efforts in California for those families that have been so 
impacted by this devastating freeze. Accountability is what people 
expect their government to do. They expect their government to solve 
problems.
  When the President spoke here in the State of the Union in January 
and said that folks are less concerned about the partisan squabbling 
that takes place and they are more concerned about doing the people's 
business, I agree with the President. In fact, this is part of the 
people's business, being accountable, being transparent, and making 
sure that after action that has already taken place, clearly 6 weeks, 
now going on to 7 weeks, after the initial disaster, that yet we have 
no response from Washington.
  Ladies and gentlemen, folks in California and those 31 counties 
expect better. My constituents expect better, and I am hopeful that 
soon the President and the administration will step up to the plate and 
take FEMA's recommendation and that the Office of Management and Budget 
will suggest to the President that, in fact, California is deserving of 
the same sort of support and response and accountability that all of 
our citizens expect.
  I thank the gentleman from Arkansas, my dear friend and colleague, 
Mr. Mike Ross.
  Mr. ROSS. An important member of the Blue Dog Coalition, a group of 
fiscally conservative Democrats who spends many a Tuesday night here on 
the floor with me talking about the need to restore common sense and 
fiscal discipline to our Federal Government.
  Why? Because today the U.S. national debt is $8,811,969,377,773 and 
some change. For every man, woman and child in America, their share, 
our share of the national debt is $29,245. It is what those of us in 
the Blue Dog Coalition have coined as the debt tax, d-e-b-t, and that 
is one tax that cannot go awayand cannot be cut until our Nation gets 
its fiscal House in order.
  Why is this important? Our Nation is borrowing nearly $1 billion a 
day. In addition to billing $1 billion a day, we are spending about 
half a billion every day paying interest on the debt we already got 
before it goes up another $1 billion today, a half a billion dollars a 
day. What could we do with that?
  Just in my district alone, give me three days' interest on the 
national debt, and I could complete I-49 across the western side of 
Arkansas. Give me another three days' interest on the national debt, 
and I could complete I-69 through the delta region of south Arkansas, 
two important interstate road projects that could help create economic 
opportunities and lift up one of the poorest regions in our country.
  Yet these priorities continue to go unmet. Why? Because of a lack of 
fiscal discipline, because too much of your hard-earned tax money is 
going to pay interest, not principal, but just interest on the national 
debt. Year after year, it is hard now to believe, but from 1998 to 
2001, we had a balanced budget in this country and a surplus, the first 
time either a Democrat or a Republican had given us that, in about 40 
years.
  Yet, we have squandered that, this administration and this Republican 
Congress, for the past 6 years, year after year, have given us the 
largest deficit ever in our Nation's history and the largest debt ever 
in our Nation's history.
  In fact, to put it in perspective, the total national debt from 1789 
to 2000 was $5.67 trillion. But for 2010, the total national debt will 
have increased to nearly $11 trillion. That is a doubling of the 211-
year debt in just 10 years. Interest payments on this debt are one of 
the fastest-growing parts of the Federal budget, the debt tax we call 
it, d-e-b-t; and it is one tax that cannot be repealed.
  Our Nation is spending more money paying interest on national debt 
than we are educating our children. If that is not wrong, I don't know 
what is. It is morally wrong.
  Well, you could see the current national debt is at an all-time high. 
Why do deficits matter? Because they do reduce economic growth. They 
burden our children and grandchildren with liabilities. They increase 
our reliance on foreign lenders who now own 40 percent of our debt. Mr. 
Speaker, this administration in the past 6 years has borrowed more 
money from foreign central banks and foreign investors than the 
previous 42 Presidents combined.
  Mr. Speaker, you might be surprised at who they are. It is kind of 
like David Letterman and his Top 10 list. Here is the Top 10 list of 
people that we have gone out and borrowed money from in the last 6 
years. The United States of America goes out to other countries and 
borrows money to fund tax cuts in this country for folks earning over 
$400,000 a year.
  Here is the Top 10, we have borrowed, the United States of America 
has borrowed, $637.4 billion from Japan; China, $346.5 billion; the 
United Kingdom, $223.5 billion. You will love this one, OPEC, the 
United States of America has borrowed $97.1 billion from OPEC; Korea, 
$67.7 billion; Taiwan, $63.2 billion; the Caribbean Banking Centers, 
$63.6 billion; Hong Kong, $51 billion; Germany, $52.1 billion.
  Rounding out the Top 10 countries, where the United States of America 
has gone and borrowed money from foreign central banks and foreign 
lenders, you will not believe this one, Mexico. The United States of 
America has borrowed $38.2 billion from Mexico to fund tax cuts in this 
country for people who earn over $400,000 a year.
  We are trying to fix this, and in this new Democratic majority, I am 
proud to tell you that not in the first 100 hours, but the first 24 
hours, the new Democratic leadership listened to the 43-member strong 
fiscally conservative Democratic Blue Dog Coalition and reinstituted 
what is known as the PAYGO rules, which means pay-as-you-go. Those were 
the rules that were in place on this House floor from 1998 through 2001 
when President Clinton gave this Nation its last balanced budget.
  Some Republicans will have you believe, oh, that means they want to 
raise taxes to fund a program. Not so. That means that we think you 
should review programs and find programs that don't work and cut them 
to pay for new programs. Pay-as-you-go does not mean raise taxes to 
fund a new program. It means restore accountability to our government, 
no more rubber-stamp Congress.
  It means we are going to demand accountability from our Federal 
agencies; and when programs don't work, and when agencies don't know 
how to administer them, we are going to cut them and use that money to 
fund other programs that can work.
  Well, we have talked a lot this evening about accountability, and I 
am real proud to be joined by one of the authors of our Iraq War 
Accountability Act. We support our troops. In fact, the gentleman here 
with me tonight, from Pennsylvania, Mr. Murphy, is an Iraqi war 
veteran. My brother-in-law is serving tonight in the Middle East.
  We support our troops, but we also want to make sure that this $12 
million an hour of your tax money that is being sent to Iraq is 
accounted for, and that it is being spent on our troops to protect them 
so they can return home safely.
  For the remaining 5 or 10 minutes we have got this evening, I 
recognize the gentleman from Pennsylvania, a new member but an 
important member of the Blue Dog Coalition, Mr. Murphy.
  Mr. PATRICK J. MURPHY of Pennsylvania. Thank you, Congressman Ross. I 
will make sure that when my wife and I retire today we will pray for 
your brother-in-law over in the Middle East. He is one of our heroes, 
and we are proud of his service to the country.
  I rise today to bring an end to the pattern of systemic neglect from 
the White House. Last November, American families sent Democrats to 
Congress to bring about change. There are now 49 new Members in the 
House of Representatives. Five of those Members are veterans. Of those 
five, I am proud to say they are all Democrats. I am also proud to say 
that three of the five are from the great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania 
in Admiral Sestak, Commander Carney, and myself.
  Change from the neglect our military veterans are currently 
experiencing, as they try to get the health care they deserve, 
Americans have seen now the

[[Page 5467]]

past few days what is going on in Walter Reed. It is our opinion that 
this is criminal neglect.

                              {time}  1845

  But when the people voted for change in November, they voted to 
change from the strategy in Iraq that has American troops refereeing a 
civil war while too many Iraqis sit on the sidelines, and a change in 
the way we pay for the war in Iraq.
  The American taxpayers have spent more than $400 billion in Iraq. If 
they were to see an invoice, just one invoice, taxpayers would see the 
widespread waste, fraud, and abuse. And that is why, as Blue Dogs, we 
stood together with the Iraqi Accountability Act. Fifty-eight Members 
of Congress agreed to this act. Congressmen Allen, Altmire, Arcuri, 
Baca, Baird, Barrow, Bean, Berry, Bishop, Boswell, Boyd, Boyda, Brady, 
Braley, Cardoza, Castor, Chandler, Costa, Davis, Donnelly, Ellsworth, 
Gillibrand, Gonzalez, Hare, Harman, Herseth, Hill, Hodes, Holden, 
Israel, Mahoney, Marshall, Matheson, McIntyre, McNerney, Melancon, 
Marchant, Miller, Mitchell, Dennis Moore, Gwen Moore, Peterson, 
Pomeroy, Ross, Salazar, Schwartz, Scott, Shuler, Tanner, Thompson, 
Welch, Filner, Walz, Clarke, Ellison, Sires, Holt, Reyes.
  All of these Members, all 58 Members are cosponsors to the Iraq 
Accountability bill, and they signed on because they have seen what is 
really going on. They have seen that over the past 4 years families of 
my district of Bucks County, Pennsylvania and northeast Philadelphia 
and across the country have heard a lot of bad news from Iraq.
  But we are also hearing about money lost and weapons missing. 
Recently here in Congress we heard from the Special Inspector General 
for Iraq Reconstruction. He spoke to the Armed Services Committee, and 
he told us about $9 billion that has simply vanished. But as many as 
14,000 weapons have disappeared, weapons that could be in the enemy's 
hands right now. These are dollars and these are weapons that were sent 
to the Iraqis that have gone missing because of mismanagement and 
fraud. It is not just about the money, but it is also about the safety 
of our troops. Those missing weapons could arm an entire division of 
the Muqtada al-Sadr army, an entire division.
  Mr. Speaker, it is long past time that we kept track of the money and 
the weapons that we are giving to the Iraqis and replace the fraud, 
waste, and abuse with proper oversight, responsibility, and 
accountability.
  The legislation that the Blue Dogs are supporting addresses the 
glaring lack of oversight and accountability in Iraq and addresses how 
taxpayer dollars are spent on the war. It puts forward commonsense 
proposals that ensure that fewer resources are wasted and more 
resources get to the troops on the battlefield.
  This legislation calls for transparency in how Iraq's war funds are 
spent. It urges the establishment of a Truman committee-type commission 
to track and curb the fraud, waste, and abuse. It calls for the Iraqi 
war to go through the normal budgeting process, not through emergency 
bills or supplementals. These are measures everyone should agree on 
regardless of the political party.
  American families are frustrated with the war in Iraq. This 
legislation will go a long way toward providing the change that we all 
seek and the transparency that we all deserve. It is time for answers, 
Mr. Speaker, and it is time for accountability, and it is time to put 
an end to the pattern of neglect.
  Mr. ROSS. I thank the gentleman from Pennsylvania for his work in 
helping write the Iraq War Accountability Act, which calls for 
transparency on how Iraq war funds are spent. It creates a Truman-like 
commission to investigate the awarding of contracts, the need to fund 
the Iraq war through the normal appropriations process and not the so-
called emergency supplementals that hide the funding, and using 
American resources to improve Iraqi assumption of internal policing 
operations. Another example of how the Blue Dogs are leading the way, 
Mr. Speaker, in trying to restore accountability to our government here 
at home as well as in Iraq.
  And in closing, Mr. Speaker, as I began this Special Order this 
evening, I talked about the terrible tornados that devastated Dumas and 
Desha Counties in my district, and I enter into the Record two letters 
addressed to the President, one February 28 and one March 5, 2007.

                                Congress of the United States,

                                Washington, DC, February 28, 2007.
     Hon. George W. Bush,
     The White House,
     Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. President: We are writing to support Governor Mike 
     Beebe's request for a Presidential declaration of major 
     disaster for Desha County in Arkansas. Currently, the State 
     of Arkansas and local communities are beginning the process 
     of recovering from the heavy rains, high winds, and tornadoes 
     that touched down in Arkansas on Saturday, February 23rd. 
     Pursuant to the provisions of Section 501(a) of the Robert T. 
     Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, we ask 
     that the State of Arkansas receive a federal disaster 
     designation for the damage assessed in Desha County.
       As you are probably aware, we represent a predominantly 
     rural state where municipal governments are often ill-
     equipped to respond to disasters of this magnitude. We have 
     no doubt that all available resources at the state and local 
     level are being used, but federal assistance will be needed 
     to help the affected communities recover.
       We would also like to specifically request that Desha 
     County be approved for the FEMA Individuals & Households 
     Program (IHP) to include Temporary Housing and assistance 
     with Mobile Homes and Travel Trailers, Small Business 
     Administration disaster loans, and Direct Federal Assistance. 
     The availability of rental property is restricted with the 
     closest jurisdiction being approximately 45 miles.
       As you know, many of the manufactured homes and travel 
     trailers purchased by FEMA for use in the Hurricane Katrina 
     disaster are currently sitting unused in Hope, Arkansas. It 
     is our belief that these manufactured homes and travel 
     trailers should be made available to those Arkansans left 
     homeless by Saturday's storms. The inability of FEMA to find 
     a permanent home for these manufactured homes and travel 
     trailers in areas affected by Katrina has been a source of 
     frustration for the Arkansas delegation and our constituents. 
     However, their close proximity to the disaster in our state 
     provides a perfect opportunity to put some of them to a good 
     use.
       Mr. President, we respectfully request your swift 
     consideration and approval of this request. If you have any 
     questions or need additional information, please do not 
     hesitate to contact us.
           Sincerely,
     Blanche L. Lincoln.
     Mark Pryor.
     Mike Ross.
                                  ____

                                                    March 5, 2007.
     Hon. George W. Bush
     President of the United States,
     The White House, Washington, DC.
       Dear Mr. President, I am writing to you because I have 
     great concerns regarding the lack of a federal disaster 
     declaration for Desha County, Arkansas, and the desperate 
     need for temporary housing for this storm-ravaged Delta 
     County.
       On February 24,2007, two terrible tornadoes hit the towns 
     of Dumas and Back Gate in Desha County, Arkansas. While my 
     heart goes out to the people in Alabama and Georgia who were 
     recently hit by deadly tornadoes, I write to you because I am 
     concerned that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) 
     has now forgotten about our situation in Arkansas. The 
     tornadoes that passed through our state destroyed or heavily 
     damaged more than 150 homes; caused 800 people to be out of 
     work because 25 businesses were destroyed; required the 
     Governor to send in the National Guard to enforce security 
     and for clean up purposes; and forced the town to be without 
     electrical power for five days. In this small town, with an 
     estimated population of 5,300, this level of damage and 
     destruction has been overwhelming.
       Desha County has still not been declared a federal disaster 
     area, and one of my greatest concerns is the fact that there 
     is no alternative housing for those residents who have been 
     displaced. Nearly 9,000 brand new, fully furnished mobile 
     homes sit less than three hours away at a FEMA staging area 
     in Hope, Arkansas, and all I ask that you make wise use of 
     our taxpayers' money and instruct FEMA Director David 
     Paulison to move 150 of these mobile homes to Desha County 
     for temporary housing.
       Last week, I toured the devastation in Desha County with 
     Governor Mike Beebe and strongly supported his request to you 
     for a federal disaster declaration to assist those businesses 
     and individuals that have been damaged or left without 
     shelter. I also joined Arkansas's U.S. Senators Blanche 
     Lincoln and Mark Pryor in support of that request. At that 
     time FEMA Director Paulison informed me in a phone 
     conversation that the

[[Page 5468]]

     Governor's request had been passed on from the FEMA Region VI 
     office to FEMA's Washington, DC office and was pending his 
     review.
       Mr. President, as you and I spoke a month ago at the House 
     Democratic Caucus Retreat in Williamsburg, Virginia, the need 
     to put to use the nearly 9,000 brand new, fully furnished 
     mobile homes stored in Hope could not be greater. It has now 
     been more than a week since these storms hit our state, and I 
     respectfully request that you do what is right and declare 
     Desha County, Arkansas, a federal disaster area. Such a 
     declaration would enable area businesses to take advantage of 
     federal resources and allow you to begin moving mobile homes 
     from the Hope Airport to Desha County for temporary housing.
       I have toured the devastation in Desha County and seen 
     first-hand the effects of this storm. I have also enclosed a 
     photo taken Saturday of the nearly 9,000 fully furnished 
     mobile homes purchased for Hurricane Katrina victims but 
     never used that sit unused in Hope, Arkansas. I again ask 
     that you declare Desha County a federal disaster area and 
     make 150 mobile homes available so that victims can have 
     access to temporary emergency shelter. This is the right 
     thing to do and I look forward to your response.
           Sincerely,
     Mike Ross.

                          ____________________