[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 158 (2012), Part 13]
[House]
[Pages 18665-18666]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1120
                         HURRICANE SANDY RELIEF

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentlewoman from 
Connecticut (Ms. DeLauro) for 2\1/2\ minutes.
  Ms. DeLAURO. Writing at the time of Katrina, Harvard Professor 
Michael Ignatieff called the Constitution ``a contract of citizenship'' 
that promises, first and foremost, protection. That government will 
help ``citizens to protect their families and possessions from forces 
beyond their control.''
  He writes:

       In America, a citizen has a claim of right on the resources 
     of his or her government when they simply cannot help 
     themselves.

  When disasters strike, they test whether the contract is respected in 
a citizen's hour of need. When the levees broke, the contract of 
American citizenship failed. Mr. Speaker, the levees broke. They broke 
in Connecticut, in New York, and New Jersey. Government is about 
helping families recover and rebuild from major disasters like 
Superstorm Sandy.
  In a shocking display of neglect, this House majority decided not to 
allow a vote on disaster aid funds so desperately needed to recover and 
repair from this storm. Hurricane Sandy was one of the most severe 
storms to hit Connecticut in our State's history. All across our 
region, families' houses were destroyed and lives were upended.
  And whether it has been a fire in the West, a tornado in the Midwest, 
a hurricane in the gulf coast, or a storm in the Northeast, this body 
acted. We didn't say no. It was a resounding ``yes'' to help because it 
is the central responsibility of this institution to act on behalf of 
the American people.

[[Page 18666]]

  And yet here we are 2 months since Sandy destroyed thousands of homes 
and businesses, took 100 lives across this Nation. This House majority 
said ``no'' on a vote for disaster assistance to help millions of 
people get back on their feet again. The Republican leadership has 
broken that contract of citizenship. They have said ``no'' to my 
constituents in Stratford, in Milford, in New Haven, East Haven, West 
Haven, Branford, North Branford and Guilford. They said ``no'' to the 
rest of the towns in Connecticut and in New York and New Jersey. They 
broke the contract of citizenship. They said: You are on your own.
  My friends, our people cannot be on their own. We have a central 
responsibility to act on behalf of the American people when they are 
overwhelmed in circumstances that they had no control over. Let us act. 
Let us act today to restore that faith and confidence in the American 
government.

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