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dontmeantobepoliticalbut · 2 years

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Florida Sens. Marco Rubio and Rick Scott called on Senate leaders Friday to provide more funding to help Florida rebuild after the devastating Hurricane Ian wiped out buildings, roads and power for millions of people.

Why It Matters: Several members of Congress from Florida previously voted against a short-term spending bill that includes aid for disaster relief.

What They Said: Rubio and Scott sent a joint letter to the Senate Appropriations Committee chairs that requested "much-needed assistance to Florida."

• “Hurricane Ian will be remembered and studied as one of the most devastating hurricanes to hit the United States,” the Florida Senators wrote. “Communities across Florida have been completely destroyed, and lives have been forever changed."

• “A robust and timely federal response, including through supplemental programs and funding, will be required to ensure that sufficient resources are provided to rebuild critical infrastructure and public services capacity, and to assist our fellow Floridians in rebuilding their lives.”

• Rubio's office did not immediately return Axios' request for comment.

Yes, But: Florida lawmakers already opposed major disaster relief earlier this week.

Flashback: The Senate passed a stopgap bill Thursday to fund the government through December that included an $18.8 billion fund for the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help states with natural disasters, CNBC reports.

• Scott voted against the bill, per the Senate roll call. Rubio was not present for the vote.

• The House voted in favor of the bill Friday. All 16 GOP members of Florida's Congressional team voted against it, according to the Tallahassee Democrat.

Scott's office pointed to a statement released Friday that said the continuing resolution (CR) in the bill "contains no funding for Florida’s response to Hurricane Ian."

• “Prior to Ian’s development, l made clear that I fully supported the proposed disaster funding for other states," Scott said in a statement.

• "This CR failed to fund the federal government until the new Congress begins in 2023, and that is why I could not support it.”

Florida Democratic Party Chair Manny Diaz criticized Floridian lawmakers for not approving the measure.

• “The same week that Hurricane Ian brought so much chaos and destruction to Florida, not a single Florida Republican cared enough to vote in favor of hurricane relief for the people in their own state hit hardest by the storm," he said, per the Democrat.

• "That is a level of callous indifference and political opportunism that boggles the mind."

The Big Picture: Multiple Republicans in Congress previously opposed hurricane relief packages or supported proposals that aimed to reduce the amount of federal money given to major storm relief, according to the Daily Beast.

Go Deeper: Ian to weaken overnight, NHC says

Death and destructions are not the only things Hurricane Ian brought to Florida this week. Along with the storm surge and high winds which devastated the southwestern portion of the Sunshine State, Governor Ron DeSantis’ chickens have also come home to roost.

The man who first made his name in Congress by opposing hurricane relief is now begging the federal government to bail out his state. In doing so, he’s providing a timely reminder to the American people as to why Republicans — and DeSantis specifically — cannot be trusted to govern this great country.

First, let’s state what should go without saying: Floridians need and deserve our help. Following tornadoes in the western portion of Kentucky last year and flooding in the eastern part this year, I condemned liberals who suggested my home state “reaped what it sowed” by voting for the likes of Mitch McConnell and Rand Paul. Florida is no exception. The people there, regardless of politics, are human beings and our fellow Americans. We have a moral and patriotic duty to come to their aid.

Yet, there was one thing those Twitter liberals got right: their criticism of McConnell and Paul. They too have opposed disaster relief for other (Democratic) areas. Indeed, Republicans seem to only care about Americans when they’re in red states. That’s despicable.

Florida’s answer to these heartless and calculating politicians is, of course, Ron DeSantis. We know just how cruel he can be – this is the man who ‘kidnapped’ refugees and flew them halfway across the country just this month. But DeSantis has always shown his true colors, going back to his earliest days as a Tea Party congressman.

In January 2013, the newly elected Congressman DeSantis opposed a $9.7 billion flood insurance aid package to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy in New York and New Jersey. Though he expressed sympathy for the victims, he said that “allowing the program to increase its debt by another $9.7 billion with no plan to offset the spending with cuts elsewhere is not fiscally responsible.” In short, DeSantis was sorry for what happened, but not enough to help. His response was basically the equivalent of a shrug emoji.

Fast forward nine-and-a-half years. Now-Governor DeSantis wants the federal government to pick up 100% of the cost for debris removal and emergency protective measures for the 60 days following the hurricane. Yet when people bring up his hypocrisy, the Governor’s spokesman says that “we have no time for politics or pettiness.”

It isn’t politics or pettiness to point out a glaring double-standard, one that seems to prove Republicans are incapable of caring for anyone but themselves. Nor is it petty to point out that Florida — a state governed by Republicans since 1999 and in which Republicans control both houses of the legislature — is in the midst of an insurance crisis.

Since the beginning of 2020, ABC News reports, “at least a dozen insurance companies in the state have gone out of business, including six this year alone.” A further 30 are being watched by the state’s Office of Insurance Regulation “because of financial instability.” Meanwhile, the state-backed Citizens Property Insurance Corporation — created as a last resort for desperate homeowners — has seen the number of policies it underwrites more than double since 2020.

The problems facing Florida’s homeowners are compounded by the shockingly low levels of flood insurance in a state barely above sea level. The New York Times reports that in the counties under an evacuation order for Hurricane Ian, only 18.5% of homes are covered through the National Flood Insurance Program. Of those, only 47.3% of homes inside government-designated floodplains have flood insurance, while outside of the area designated a floodplain by the NFIP — areas still very likely to have been damaged by the storm surge — only about 9.4% have flood insurance.

Ian, like Sandy in 2012, was more of a flood event than a wind event. As such, traditional homeowners’ and even hurricane insurance is unlikely to cover much of the damage. Those without flood insurance will be left to foot the bill to recover and rebuild, or to rely on the government for assistance.

In fairness, not all of this is DeSantis’ fault. He can’t control the fact that Florida is susceptible to hurricanes, nor can he control whether people have flood insurance or national insurers do business in the state. I’m also not inclined to blame him for the rampant litigation and insurance fraud in the state.

But it’s worth noting that insurance premiums more than doubled during DeSantis’ term. Former governor Charlie Crist, who is DeSantis’ Democratic opponent in his race for reelection, pointed out that “Floridians now pay the highest property insurance premiums in the country.”

Despite a new law allocating $2 billion to a reinsurance fund, which Bankrate says “can help home insurance companies share risk, which lessens the likelihood that any one company will become insolvent,” the damage from Hurricane Ian is likely to far exceed what that reinsurance fund can handle. It’s no surprise, then, that DeSantis is looking to Washington — and to President Biden, a man he routinely denigrates and insults — to bail his state out.

Washington and President Biden should and, I expect, will do just that — because unlike Ron DeSantis, Joe Biden is a decent man. He doesn’t play politics with people’s lives and homes the way DeSantis has done from quite literally the moment he first entered Congress. Biden will help Florida, not because it is politically beneficial to him, but because it is the right thing to do.

DeSantis will, no doubt, try to take credit for that. We should not let him. The man has shown us who he is time and again. The only reason he is advocating federal aid in this disaster is because it’s his own state, one which will suffer immense economic and humanitarian harm without it. Had this hurricane hit a blue state, though, DeSantis would probably be demanding we let our fellow citizens fend for themselves.

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saywhat-politics · 13 days

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The measure comes in response to a group of Republicans introducing a bill to rename Dulles airport after the former president and presumptive GOP presidential nominee.

April 5, 2024, 10:48 AM MST

By Sahil Kapur and Dareh Gregorian

WASHINGTON — Three Democratic congressmen unveiled legislation Friday to rename a federal prison in Miami after former President Donald Trump.

The bill — offered by Reps. Gerry Connolly, of Virginia; Jared Moskowitz, of Florida; and John Garamendi, of California — comes in response to a measure introduced by a group of House Republicans to rename Washington Dulles International Airport after Trump.

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tomorrowusa · 16 days

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« Donald Trump is facing 91 felony charges. If Republicans want to name something after him, I’d suggest they find a federal prison. »

— Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA-11) responding to a Republican proposal to rename Dulles International Airport in Virginia after Donald Trump. From a statement on Rep. Connolly's House site.

Yep, House Republicans are barely functional as a caucus but some of them feel the need to pander publicly to Trump's Stalinist cult of personality.

House Republicans want to rename Virginia's Dulles Airport after Donald Trump

While Rep. Connolly's suggestion regarding federal prisons is a good one, there are also a number of other facilities for which the Trump name would be fitting: sewage treatment plants, toxic waste dumps, nuclear testing sites, and the US Consulate General in Vladivostok, Russia.

#donald trump #dulles international airport #virginia #airports #house republicans #us house of representatives #gerry connolly #va-11 #trump felonies #federal prisons #lock him up!#election 2024

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soberscientistlife · 11 months

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A person with a baseball bat entered the district office of Rep. Gerry Connolly, D-Va., on Monday morning and attacked two members of his staff, the congressman said in a statement.

"This morning, an individual entered my District Office armed with a baseball bat and asked for me before committing an act of violence against two members of my staff. The individual is in police custody and both members of my team were transferred to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries," Connolly said.

but do go on about Democrats being violent

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socialjusticeinamerica · 11 months

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Democratic Congressman’s office attacked by violent MAGAt terrorist.

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republicansaredomesticterrorists · 11 months

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Another MAGA domestic terrorist intimidating a Democrat on behalf of his orange god and the Republikkkan Congressional fire breathers.

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techtalkbyjames · 14 days

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Trump Stinks.

If you have to victimize the weak, the poor, the ill, or the tired to win, then you don't understand the job... VOTE BIDEN for a better tomorrow.

Go BLUE WAVE : We The People means Everyone ! Protect Democracy! Keep Game Show hosts out of the Oval office..

Footnote: Name a prison after Trump, not an airport in DC.

#teambiden

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longwindedbore · 7 months

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McCarthy could have said something about bipartisanship or the middle ground.

Or even that he had to give away more to the Democrats because of 10 nutjobber Republucans who rejected their own nutjobber demands…repeatedly. Rejected the funding bill even after McCarthy violated parlimentary procedures to allow the nutjobbers their impeachment fishing expedition.

But no-o-o-o. The Dems saved McCarthy’s bacon over the weekend. Then bashing them was the first thing he did?

So the Dems rolled the dice figuring that there are plenty of Republicans all of whom could do better jobs as committee chairpeople than Gaetz or Jordon or Comer or any other nutjobber McCarthy installed.

208 out of 218 of GOP in the House whom can see a better set up for themselves with McCarthy gone and the nutjobbers sidelined.

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kp777 · 9 months

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By Jake Johnson

Common Dreams

Aug. 4, 2023

"Given the historic nature of the charges brought forth in these cases, it is hard to imagine a more powerful circumstance for televised proceedings."

Dozens of House Democrats on Thursday urged the policy-setting body of the federal judiciary to authorize live broadcasts of former President Donald Trump's upcoming court proceedings as he faces charges stemming from his effort to overturn the 2020 election.

Cameras are usually barred from federal courtrooms, but 38 House Democrats argued in a letter to the Judicial Conference that "given the historic nature of the charges brought forth in these cases, it is hard to imagine a more powerful circumstance for televised proceedings."

"It is imperative the conference ensures timely access to accurate and reliable information surrounding these cases and all of their proceedings, given the extraordinary national importance to our democratic institutions and the need for transparency," reads the letter, which was led by Reps. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Gerry Connolly (D-Va.), Hank Johnson (D-Ga.), and Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.).

"If the public is to fully accept the outcome, it will be vitally important for it to witness, as directly as possible, how the trials are conducted, the strength of the evidence adduced, and the credibility of witnesses," the letter continues. "We urge the conference to take additional steps, including live broadcasting, to ensure the facts of this case are brought forward, unfiltered, to the public."

The lawmakers released their letter shortly after Trump appeared in federal court in Washington, D.C. and pleaded not guilty to four felony counts laid out in a 45-page indictment filed earlier this week by Special Counsel Jack Smith, who was appointed in November to lead investigations into Trump's election subversion efforts and the January 6 attack.

The charges include conspiracy to defraud the United States and " conspiracy against the right to vote and to have one's vote counted."

The first pretrial hearing is set to take place on August 28.

The severity of the charges against Trump—who is seeking the presidency again in 2024—and the trial's massive implications have led legal experts to make the case for allowing video cameras into the courtroom.

Andrew Weissmann, a former top prosecutor at the Justice Department, toldVanity Fair on Thursday that the decision rests with the chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court, John Roberts, who is the chair of the Judicial Conference.

"It's going to be incumbent on the chief justice of the United States to make this trial public," said Weissmann. "He has the power to do that."

Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.

#donald trump #televised judicial proceedings #u.s. history #the big lie #attempted coup

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bighermie · 9 months

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Share Link

Dem Rep. Connolly: ‘So-Called Whistleblowers’ Don’t Understand How Prosecutors Make Decisions https://www.breitbart.com/clips/2023/07/21/dem-rep-connolly-so-called-whistleblowers-dont-understand-how-prosecutors-make-decisions/

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dontmeantobepoliticalbut · 11 months

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Police arrested a man who entered the district office of Democratic Representative Gerry Connolly of Virginia, after he attacked two members of his staff with a baseball bat.

Mr. Connolly released a statement saying that the person who committed the attack is now in the custody of the City of Fairfax Police Department after causing non-life-threatening injuries to the staffers.

“Right now, our focus is on ensuring they are receiving the care they need,” Mr. Connolly said on Monday.

The suspect allegedly visited the politician’s district office and asked for the congressman while holding the baseball bat before attacking the two staffers.

“I have the best team in Congress,” Mr. Connolly said in a statement. “My district office staff make themselves available to constituents and members of the public every day. The thought that someone would take advantage of my staff’s accessibility to commit an act of violence is unconscionable and devastating.”

Lisa Gardner, a spokesperson for the police department in Fairfax, said the attacker wielded a metal bat and said he will be held in the Fairfax County Adult Detention Center.

“It is very concerning and it’s quite frankly scary that someone can just walk up to an office, holding a baseball bat and just start swinging at innocent victims,” she said.

US Capitol Police and the Fairfax City Police Department said Xuan Kha Tran Pham, 49, of Fairfax entered the office around 10:49am on Monday with a metal baseball bat and assaulted the two staffers.

The attack is the latest in a spate of violent threats against members of Congress in recent months. In February, Democratic Representative Angie Craig of Minnesota was attacked outside her Washington DC apartment. Similarly, last year, a man attacked then-Republican Representative Lee Zeldin of New York, who was campaigning for Governor at the time.

In addition, another man broke into the San Francisco home of then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and assaulted her husband Paul Pelosi, which led to him suffering serious injuries. Violent threats against members of Congress have spiked in recent years.

The number of threats against members of Congress tripled from 2017 to 2021 when they reached 9,625. Senator Susan Collins of Maine warned The New York Times last year that “I wouldn’t be surprised if a Senator or House member were killed.” Ms. Gardner said Mr. Connolly’s office hadn’t made the department aware of any threats.

House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries denounced the attack.

“I have asked the House Sergeant at Arms and the U.S. Capitol Police to continue their focus on collaborating with our Members,” he said in a statement.

“We must collectively take every available precaution to protect Members and our staff, who serve the American people with patriotism and passion and deserve to do so without fear for their safety.”

#us politics #news #the independent #rep. Gerry Connolly #Virginia #Fairfax Police Department #Lisa Gardner #Xuan Kha Tran Pham #US Capitol Police #violent threats against members of Congress #rep. hakeem jeffries #2023 #Democrats

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