Campaign Action
As we move into this New Year of 2018, conditions in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands are still atrocious. As Americans we have failed other Americans. As Democrats we cannot allow Republicans to let this nightmare continue—and it will, as long as they have the power to ride roughshod over millions of people. They don’t give a damn about how many have died, they don’t give a damn about old folks and school children and pregnant moms, they could care less about climate change, and have no interest in the economy of our territories—unless they see an opportunity for exploitation.
The problem is not simply Donald Trump. It is his appointed administrators like Ben Carson, the heads of agencies like FEMA, but most of all it is Republicans in the Senate and the House.
The tax bill they passed has made the situation worse. Given unstable economies and debt crises in both Puerto Rico and the USVI the situation will deteriorate unless we take drastic steps to change the course.
There is only one solution. We must wrest power from the hands of the soulless vultures who are currently at the wheel of the ship of state. All the fundraising we have done and continue to do is only a Band Aid on a gaping wound. Endless discussion of the status issue will not resolve anything. That is for the future. Right now we need the power of the U.S. government. Whether or not Donald Trump is impeached is not what we need to focus on when dealing with PR and the USVI. We have to gain control of the House, and the Senate.
I applaud the senators who sponsored The Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands Equitable Rebuild Act, which has been referred to as a “Marshall Plan” for Puerto Rico and the USVI, who represent every faction of the Democratic Party. Standing together are Bernie Sanders (I-VT)—who introduced the bill, side by side with Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Kirstin Gillibrand (D-NY), Kamala Harris (D-CA), Ed Markey (D-MA) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA). They were joined by Virgin Islands’ delegate to Congress, Democratic Rep. Stacey Plaskett, Rep. Nydia Velázquez, (D-NY) and Rep. Darren Soto (D-FL) who are introducing the House version.
We will need this type of solidarity if anything is to be accomplished for PR and the USVI in the future. As we move into campaign mode for the upcoming midterm elections, I hope to see every single person running as a Democratic Party candidate for a seat in the Senate or the House endorse this bill (and more) and make the fate of PR and the USVI an integral part of their platform.
While I was heartened to see this bill proposed, it will be nothing but empty rhetoric without the power to turn it into the law of the land. That goes for other efforts being proposed in the House and the Senate and to multiple government agencies.
We, the voters, hold the fates of our island brothers and sisters in our hands.
Let’s review what is in the bill.
The bill addresses seven components necessary to rebuild and move the islands forward:
1) Debt and Privatization: Puerto Rico’s debt must be addressed to ensure the territory can recover with dignity. Congress must also prevent the privatization of public institutions to benefit creditors in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands. Puerto Rico is struggling with an unsustainable $74.8 billion of debt, much of which is held by Wall Street creditors, with an additional $49 billion in unpaid pension obligations. The territories’ recovery should not add to existing debt.
2) Resilient and Renewable Energy: Instead of simply rebuilding an antiquated, centralized and inefficient system dependent on imported fossil fuels, the bill ensures the electric grids will be rebuilt to be more renewable and resilient, to provide less expensive electricity and create local jobs.
3) Medicaid and Medicare Parity: The health care systems in the Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico were inadequate before the hurricanes made landfall, in large part because they receive far fewer federal dollars compared to states. The bill makes Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands eligible for the same Medicare and Medicaid benefits as the rest of America.
4) Rebuild and Improve the VA Hospital and Clinics: Appropriates necessary funds to the VA for veterans in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
5) Improve Public Schools, Colleges, and Childcare Facilities: In addition to rebuilding damaged schools and childcare facilities, we must face the fact that many of these facilities were inadequate before the storms hit. Hundreds of public schools in Puerto Rico have been closed because of austerity policies and schools in the Virgin Islands are struggling to prepare students for college and future careers. The bill appropriates necessary funds for services and facilities for public Head Start, elementary, secondary and higher education.
6) Invest in Infrastructure and Spur Economic Development: Underfunded infrastructure in Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands contributed to the severity of the damage from Hurricanes Irma and Maria. In addition to rebuilding damaged facilities, the legislation would make significant investments in the islands’ physical infrastructure to spur the local economy and create jobs.
7) Environmental Cleanup: Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands have significant environmental contamination related to the hurricanes, prior pollution and a legacy of military bombing exercises on Vieques. The legislation would provide grants to the EPA, the Department of the Interior and the Department of Defense for environmental remediation.
The bill, as of 11/28/2017, was “Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.” I am sure it will languish there forever as long as Republicans are in charge.
Other efforts being made by Democrats address heads of key committees.
Signed by Sens. Elizabeth Warren, Bill Cassidy, Bernard Sanders, Robert Casey, Michael Bennet, Sheldon Whitehouse, Tammy Baldwin, Christopher Murphy and Tim Kaine.
From Sen. Warren’s website:
Warren, Cassidy, Colleagues Call for HELP Committee Hearings on Hurricanes' Impact on Puerto Rico & U.S. Virgin Islands
Noting the extensive damage caused by the hurricanes to the islands' education and public health infrastructures, the senators urged Chairman Alexander to hold hearings to address these issues and to evaluate the relief provided by the Department of Health and Human Services and Department of Education, both of which fall under the HELP Committee's jurisdiction. "Given the extent of the damage inflicted upon both territories, as well as the important roles of the departments under this committee's jurisdiction in ongoing hurricane relief efforts, we believe such hearings would be an important part of the Committee's oversight related to hurricane recovery," the senators wrote. "Hearings could help ensure that the Senate has a detailed understanding of the health and education challenges facing Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, as well as an understanding of how Departments under the Committee's purview have provided relief, and how they can improve relief efforts."
The HELP Committee has not yet held any hearings on how the two territories have been affected by the storms.
Because of the media focus on all things Trump, we hear very little about these efforts. There are times I get the feeling no one in Congress is doing a damn thing—though that is simply my frustration speaking. Attempts are being made—the problem is that those attempts bear little or no fruit. Here’s Sen. Warren’s list of her activities and actions as an example:
In the months since Hurricanes Irma and Maria devastated Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, Senator Warren has:
- Called for an investigation of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) decision to award over $30 million in contracts to Bronze Star LLC for temporary roofing materials in Puerto Rico that were never delivered.
- Introduced a comprehensive plan, along with Senator Sanders and colleagues, to address the immediate humanitarian needs in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and ensure that the islands not only recover, but are able to rebuild in a way that empowers them to thrive.
- Led five of her Senate colleagues in writing to the Department of Defense to request information on the Department's efforts to provide medical care in the aftermath of Hurricanes Maria, and to request information on the role of the USNS Comfort in the Department's Puerto Rico response efforts.
- Joined colleagues in urging Senate appropriators to include in a third disaster supplemental bill additional funding to help schools impacted by Hurricanes Irma and Maria.
- Urged Puerto Rico's Financial Oversight and Management Board to request that the Court overseeing Puerto Rico's debt restructuring completely write off the Island's debt obligations.
- Led a group of 12 senators asking the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for information about water- and vector-borne diseases in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
- Written to the Trump Administration outlining what ought to be included in a third disaster supplemental appropriations bill to address the damage caused by hurricanes and wildfires across the country.
- Joined colleagues in demanding federal agencies expedite power restoration efforts in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
- Joined in leading a group of 7 senators in pushing the Trump administration to increase efforts on Vieques and Culebra, especially securing the Vieques Superfund site.
- Urged the Department of Education to use its discretion to help college students and student loan borrowers displaced or otherwise unable to continue their education in the wake of Hurricanes Irma and Maria.
- Led a group of senators urging DHS to take steps to ensure the accuracy of the official fatality count in Puerto Rico in the wake of Hurricanes Irma and Maria.
- Called for Puerto Rico's debt relief during a Capitol Hill rally in coordination with the #JustRecovery march.
- Participated in a FEMA briefing on the status of recovery efforts in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
- Led a coalition of senators in a letter to President Trump, urging him to step up disaster recovery efforts on the Puerto Rican islands of Vieques and Culebra.
- Held community meetings in Massachusetts to discuss the economic and humanitarian crises on the islands.
- Pressed President Trump to take eight immediate, specific actions in response to the crisis in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
- Urged HHS to provide additional resources and better coordinate efforts to combat the growing public health crisis on the ground.
- Called on the President to use his authority under the Defense Production Act to more swiftly respond to the disaster.
- Written to Republican leadership requesting that Congress be allowed to promptly take up legislation to provide the necessary aid to the U.S. citizens living on the islands.
- Asked President Trump to waive the local cost-sharing requirement for the hurricane response in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands and for the federal government to fully cover recovery expenses.
- Joined Senator Markey in calling for a resolution to the Univision-Verizon retransmission dispute, to hasten the restoration of Spanish-language news programming in the wake of the hurricanes.
You can see the problem clearly if you look at the verbs used—“called for” and “urged” are the most frequent.
Unless we have the power to “do” and not simply ask, and beg—Puerto Rico and the USVI will continue to be second class, overlooked, ignored and exploited.
We cannot depend on the influx of islanders to the mainland to shift the balance of power across the U.S. Yes, new mainlanders could make a difference in Florida, and perhaps in parts of Pennsylvania.
Upwards of 77,000 people over age 18—all of them eligible voters—are likely to move to Florida, according to a detailed study from the Center for Puerto Rican Studies at Hunter/City University of New York. In November 2016, Trump beat Clinton in Florida by nearly 120,000 votes. An addition 15,000 school-age youths are also expected in Florida.
The CUNY study, issued this month, also predicted that Texas would see upwards of 27,000 storm refugees; Pennsylvania would see 27,000 arrivals; New York would see nearly 12,000 and New Jersey would see nearly 14,000.
Though Puerto Rico’s Gov. Rossello has belatedly announced he will be organizing Latinos to vote against those elected officials who have not been supportive of PR, what happens to Puerto Rico and the USVI cannot be the responsibility of mainland Puerto Ricans.
It rests on our shoulders and our ability to not only get out the vote, and win—but to also ensure that our candidates, whether they are in Iowa, Kansas, Georgia or Wisconsin are calling for dealing equitably with Puerto Rico and the USVI.
Check who is running for Congress in your district or state. See what issues they are addressing. If they don’t mention Puerto Rico and the USVI, ask them why not and if they will support rebuilding legislation?
Kudos to our politicians who have been standing up and speaking out. As a reminder, here is the full list of representatives who voted against disaster relief for U.S. citizens.
Justin Amash (R-Michigan)
Jim Banks (R-Indiana)
Andy Burr (R-Kentucky)
Joe Barton (R-Texas)
Jack Bergman (R-Michigan)
Andy Biggs (R-Arizona)
Mike Bishop (R-Michigan)
Marsha Blackburn (R-Tennessee)
Rod Blum (R-Iowa)
Dave Brat (R-Virginia)
Mo Brooks (R-Alabama)
Ken Buck (R-Colorado)
Ted Budd (R-North Carolina)
Steve Chabot (R-Ohio)
James Comer (R-Kentucky)
Warren Davidson (R-Ohio)
Scott DesJarlais (R-Tennessee)
Sean Duffy (R-Wisconsin)
Jeff Duncan (R-South Carolina)
John Duncan (R-Tennessee)
Tom Emmer (R-Minnesota)
Virginia Foxx (R-North Carolina)
Trent Franks (R-Arizona)
Mike Gallagher (R-Wisconsin)
Thomas Garret (R-Virginia)
Bob Gibbs (R-Ohio)
Louie Gohmert (R-Texas)
Bob Goodlatte (R-Virginia)
Paul Gosar (R-Arizona)
Morgan Griffith (R-Virginia)
Andy Harris (R-Maryland)
Jeb Hensarling (R-Texas)
Jody Hice (R-Georgia)
French Hill (R-Arkansas)
George Holding (R-North Carolina)
Richard Hudson (R-North Carolina)
Mike Johnson (R-Louisiana)
Walter Jones (R-North Carolina)
Jim Jordan (R-Ohio)
Trent Kelly (R-Mississippi)
David Kustoff (R-Texas)
Doug Lamborn (R-Colorado)
Jason Lewis (R-Minnesota)
Barry Loudermilk (R-Georgia)
Kenny Marchant (R-Texas)
Thomas Massie (R-Kentucky)
Mark Meadows (R-North Carolina)
Luke Messer (R-Indiana)
Alex Mooney (R-West Virginia)
Markwayne Mullin (R-Oklahoma)
Kristi Noem (R-South Dakota)
Ralph Norman (R-South Carolina)
Gary Palmer (R-Alabama)
Steve Pearce (R-New Mexico)
Scott Perry (R-Pennsylvania)
Robert Pittenger (R-North Carolina)
John Ratcliffe (R-Texas)
Todd Rokita (R-Indiana)
Keith Rothfus (R-Pennsylvania)
David Rouzer (R-North Carolina)
Mark Sanford (R-South Carolina)
David Schweikert (R-Arizona)
Jamex Sensenbrenner (R-Wisconsin)
Jason Smith (R-Missouri)
Chris Stewart (R-Utah)
Mark Walker (R-North Carolina)
Jackie Walorski (R-Indiana)
Brad Wenstrup (R-Ohio)
Roger Williams (R-Texas)
Continue to Support Puerto Rico and the USVI.