Sixty days before the last presidential selection, four hurricanes pummeled Florida with a then-estimated $18 billion in damages. Florida was an important swing state, and one or two polls indicated the Florida count might be close.
The answer? Cover the state with money. FEMA money.
But two old school newspaper reporters in Miami questioned why so much FEMA largess was pouring into pockets untouched by wind or rain. An article last October and again last month prompted letters from Fla. Sen. Bill Nelson, and now the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs announced it will investigate.
Here's the newspaper story, by Sally Kestin and Megan O'Matz of the Miami bureau of the Florida Sun-Sentinel, a Chicago Trib paper: payoff
Here's some excerpts:
Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla., wrote to [committee chair Maine Republican Susan] Collins in October after the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported that thousands of Miami-Dade County residents had collected Hurricane Frances aid even though the Labor Day storm hit 100 miles to the north.
As of Tuesday, FEMA had paid $29.7 million to 12,569 residents of the county.
Nelson again wrote to Collins last month after the newspaper reported that FEMA gave more than $70 million to residents of other areas barely touched by disaster. In Alabama and North Carolina, the government poured money into communities even after local emergency managers reported no damage and warned of possible fraud.
<snip>
FEMA spokeswoman Lea Anne McBride said of the investigation: "We stand by the hundreds of thousands of disaster victims throughout Florida who are eligible and entitled to disaster assistance, and we are confident in our programs that provide this needed assistance."
That should settle it. Gosh, if they were unconfident, we'd have a problem. Can you guess from the script that Joe Lieberman is the ranking Dem on the committee?
South Florida congressmen, outraged over the FEMA payments in Miami-Dade, applauded the investigation.
"I think there's a lot of public pressure out there to really look into how these payments were made, who approved this, and why such a large sum of money was paid to an area really not affected at all," said Lale Mamaux, spokeswoman for Rep. Robert Wexler, D-Boca Raton. "Hopefully soon, we're going to have answers."
Folks, this can only get bigger and better.
Other congressional committees also will likely investigate, said Fred Turner, spokesman for Rep. Alcee Hastings, D-Miramar.
"What we saw in [Miami-Dade] was particularly egregious, especially in light of the ongoing need of so many others in the rest of South Florida and the Treasure Coast,'' Turner said. "There are still people who have serious needs in Martin and St. Lucie counties, and people are getting new flat screen TVs [in Miami-Dade]. I mean, c'mon."
Here's what federal disaster assistance 60 days before the presidential election in a swing state buys these days:
...rooms full of furniture, new wardrobes and thousands of TVs and appliances for Miami-Dade residents. The government paid for new cars, dental bills and a funeral, even though the Medical Examiner recorded no storm-related deaths.
Here are my favorite quotes:
FEMA has provided no explanation for the payments, but on Thursday spokeswoman Mary Hudak said the funeral reimbursement was legitimate. Citing the Privacy Act, FEMA refused to provide the deceased's name or circumstances of the death.
And here's the part I found most interesting:
The newspaper found a majority of the Frances claims concentrated in poor, inland areas of Miami-Dade, where landlords, storeowners and major landmarks reported no damage.
Some residents called FEMA relief "free money'' and said they saw neighbors throwing rocks at cars and hosing down belongings to collect aid.
In Homestead, government relief bought jewelry and paid for a wedding, residents told the paper.
And we claim Republicans are heartless. Shame on us. Well, all good things must end. The inspector general of the Department of Homeland Security is conducting a criminal investigation. The jig is up. But not just yet...
Meanwhile, the checks keep rolling in. FEMA has twice extended the deadline to apply, most recently last month.
All Floridians, including Miami-Dade residents, now have until Feb. 28 to file a hurricane assistance claim.
Comment on this diary if you'd like, but I'm leaving for a few hours to visit my local FEMA office. Need some dental work.