PELOSI — Remarks at Press Conference on Unfinished Hurricane Recovery in Puerto Rico & U.S. Virgin Islands
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Leader Pelosi. Good morning, everyone.
We've come together very prayerfully this morning with prayers in our hearts for all our fellow Americans who are facing the terrible winds and waters of Hurricane Florence. We're praying for the safety of the families in harm's way and for the heroic first responders who have come from across America to help.
We owe the communities facing Hurricane Florence a solemn pledge: in these critical months of recovery to come, the government will do everything it can to save lives and make them whole - the promises we owe every American facing disaster.
But sadly that promise was not kept for our fellow Americans in
It was my honor to be joined on that trip by Representative
Congresswoman
And of course Representative
The three Members and I were part of a sixteen Member delegation.
This month
The suffering endured by our fellow Americans over the past year has been a challenge to the conscience of our nation, yet
Think about that. Pray over that. Think of the people who are affected by that.
The attitude from the Administration and from the
And right now, in real time, as we see the suffering on our
I think there's been - I don't know if there's been any loss of life, but hopefully in the recovery, it's not just about rescue, but the recovery will be about the well-being of the people there.
And that's one of the manifestations of natural disaster that we saw in
Now it's my honor to yield to a person who has been relentless, persistent, dissatisfied, constant in her advocacy for the people, the American citizens in
* * *
Leader Pelosi. Thank you, Ranking Member Velazquez.
It is important to note that we planned this meeting with the press long before the President made his statement. We went to
Unfortunately, the President put in clear focus part of the challenge that is there in terms of not understanding that when a President speaks his, words weigh a ton, and when he says something so demoralizing that the weight of it all is just incomprehensible.
When we were there we went to the
She took us all over the
Clearly, she commands great respect there and she does in the
* * *
Leader Pelosi. Thank you very much,
Obviously, one of our purposes is to remove the obstacles of participation of individuals having access to the money, whether it's for housing or whatever. And, again, the intent of
With that, I'm pleased to yield to Congresswoman
And so she as a Member, as I mentioned before, of the
* * *
Leader Pelosi. Thank you very much, Congresswoman
As you can see from these three leaders, our brief is well-documented, there is great knowledge and experience that went behind our going on that trip and continues as we try to expedite the assistance. There were many other Members on the CODEL, but we're not in session today, so we have three Representatives of the different aspects of it.
Let me just say this. When I first was a new Member of
And for there to be any doubt in anyone's mind in a time of these very predictable natural disasters that we have to be there in a timely fashion, time is the most valuable commodity and the money that goes with it. The sooner the money, the better it is.
Now, we expect that this is an opportunity, that in
What we saw was interest in having renewable energy sources so that we can help to slow down, to lessen the heat that accelerates the pace of these hurricanes. So there are all kinds of opportunities here.
But first and foremost, we have to be there to meet the needs of people, whether it's Community Development Block Grants or whether it's removing obstacles of participation to access housing money, whether it's thinking about how we build the committee by thinking in new terms about what that grid would look like if it is really about the future. The list goes on and on.
As
But we are determined, as you can tell, by the determination and the knowledge and the vision that our colleagues have on this subject.
Unfortunately, we're coming to you, again planning this well in advance, but not knowing that Florence would be taking its toll at this time. So, again, our thoughts, prayers and actions have to be to have that immediate rescue, emergency recovery, and then go on to what comes next after that.
Any questions on this subject first"
* * *
Q:
You talk about the role of public servants in the natural disasters and what you did after the earthquake in
Leader Pelosi. I certainly hope not. I'm going to defer to my colleagues to respond to that.
But I will say this: this is about the American people wherever they are. And I know that the Resident Commissioner from
Q: But the premise is they don't have a vote on the Floor and they don't have any representation at all in the
Leader Pelosi. But let me just erase all of that, what you just said. These are about the American people and our obligation to them. I don't think that it has anything to do with the representation in
I will defer to my colleagues.
But I'd have you note that, if you noted, the President requested
Whether we don't have a vote on the floor, you know, I'm on the floor all the time, and I know
And so I would propose to you that Members of
Congresswoman
But it also stands juxtaposed against the Administration in this instance who was confused. I don't think they understood - and I'm being polite - that they represent all Americans. And some of them happen to live in the
They also represent, if I might say, Californians. And I've heard
So it is a question of leadership at the level of the Administration in terms of bringing us all together and recognizing one person's disaster is everyone's disaster. And I hope we ask that question of the administration: What is their intent in going forward in responding to the needs of Americans who are going to face disasters almost every year?
Leader Pelosi. If, in fact, your question is about is there any difference of opinion in the
Yes, ma'am?
Q: Are you anticipating that
Leader Pelosi. I think we're going to need more money.
Q: Can I ask why you think that?
Leader Pelosi. Well, because we don't know what the extent of it is now. And I think if you saw, it was like a month ago - well, right as we went to
So now, on top of it all - now, we have a new year coming after
But, look, last year the
If they could do that and squander and increase the debt, and then nickel and dime us on meeting the needs of individuals in our communities, that's just not right. I don't think they would go down that path. Let's hope that with the visibility that all of this is receiving and the firsthand knowledge that they are seeing in the Carolinas that they will know.
Now, one other point I want to make, and maybe Congresswoman
Sheila?
Congresswoman
This was about getting more beds for people who, obviously, have come under a more distorted immigration policy that does not match the needs of homeland security. These are about my constituents who are driving a bread truck or they are on a construction with five children and a family who, obviously, could be adjusted.
They are Dreamers who are either on the edge of their status, that now they are expanding the reach of ICE to go into these homes and neighborhoods, and they are doing it in my constituency. That's the made'up need for beds.
And
But there are certainly other disasters. There are explosions going on in the
So we are against, and we fought against the ludicrous act of going to what you thought was going to be just money sitting there for, as I have said, rescue and it is emergency recovery versus long'term recovery, which is what
And as my colleagues have said, they don't have enough staff that are in particular expertise that can be bifurcated for those who have to stay on the ground and help people get back on their feet.
There may be a team that
So,
Leader Pelosi. I just may say, as we learn more about what happened in
What I did see early this morning was that one of the law enforcement people there said it was like Armageddon, it was so explosive, literally explosive.
And so, again, we don't know what the needs might be there, but we do know that we want people to have comfort in the thought that if they need help, that there's no question that it will be there.
Any other questions on this?
Yes?
Q: Yes, Leader Pelosi. The Governor of
Leader Pelosi. I'm going to yield to
At that time we questioned the number. It was at 47 when we went down there. Well, he told us of course they don't have the pathologists in order to do the autopsies to confirm that a death was for this reason or not.
And that was part of his appeal. He requested federal assistance to reduce the backlog of processing corpses caused by a combination of pathologists leaving the island, funding shortages, and many doctors not trained to certify disaster'related deaths. This is an intense issue.
But in terms of the overall attitude of the Governor and his, shall we say, being hopeful about the President, I'm going to yield to
[Laughter]
Leader Pelosi. It's a prerogative of the Leader.
[Laughter]
[Laughter]
Well, yesterday for the first time you and I and the Puerto Rican people saw a tweet by the Governor directed to the President's tweet. And so it was forceful and demanded the President, you know, we not continue to subject mental abuse of those who are suffering and that it is our collective responsibility to do right by our fellow citizens.
Well, the Governor is doing what he thinks is best in terms of getting the cooperation by this President. I think he knows that there are some others like me that would call the President out when he is lying to the American people and when he is failing fellow citizens.
And they understand and they believe that a phone call from the President or the Administration may in fact speed that up for them. And so they are walking a very tough line in terms of how they deal with the President, and in particular this President, who can take personal umbrage at individuals doing their own job rather than kowtowing to him.
You know, I was very upset with our Governor of the
Well, I told our Governor behind closed doors and in public that you be the good parent and I'll be the bad parent, and I will be the one who calls him out on a daily basis if that's, in fact, the case, and you play good cop with this guy if you think that that's going to be helpful to us, right" Because you need a good cop and a bad cop sometimes when you deal with people who don't follow the law.
Leader Pelosi. Well, we want the truth to prevail and you have to have data, evidence, facts in order to address the needs that are there in a very timely fashion.
And so while I completely and entirely agree with
So, again, understanding they don't want to alienate the President, but understanding also that we all have responsibilities to the people of
One more" Yes.
Q: You mentioned earlier the issue of potentially remaking the power grid in
Leader Pelosi. Yes.
Q: And there has been some Republican interest in that as well, Chairman Bishop,
Leader Pelosi. Well, those of us who have been here a while have been to - unfortunately, have witnessed many disasters, not only in our own country, but around the world. And there is, in all of the sadness in the world, the chance for a phoenix to rise up, for a boom economy to emerge as we address the needs of people.
And one of those in the islands where these hurricanes have such a toll is to recognize the role of the climate crisis there and that what we saw there was a very big interest in renewables, whether it was wind or solar, with storage and the rest, in order to take us to a better place and a better grid.
There are still some naysayers who stand in the way of investment that has been attracted there. We visited a solar site where the investment had been made. There had been some obstacles to having it reach its fulfillment. Those are the kinds of issues that we have to deal with.
But there is no choice, there is no choice, you cannot just be a sitting duck for another hurricane unless we address the opportunity that is there to diminish the dependence on fossil fuel, which is contributing to the heat on the ground, the ferocity of the hurricanes. And it is too expensive anyway, it is too expensive anyway to import it in.
So for all these reasons, growth is about new green technologies which will hopefully diminish the ferocity of these hurricanes. And that's not just
When we visited
That includes burying more lines, that would be composite posts rather than wooden poles, that includes renewable energies that will be able to not just harden the system for other disasters that come, but driving the cost down of energy.
Most Americans on the mainland don't even know how much they pay per kilowatt hour, and it's anywhere between 10 and
And so the ability that
Remember we have an isolated system. We're not able to pull from other areas as well to get scale. And so that isolation as long as our dependence on fossil fuels and antiquated generator systems, because we have not had the capital investments to be able to make those, is really an ability that
Congresswoman
The overall electric grid in
So to answer the question about a supplemental, certainly a supplemental and the prospective commitment of this country to look at our overall electric grid and to deal with disasters where we make things better than what they are - and of course that's the
So throwing paper towels is not an answer. Denying the tragedy of death is not an answer. And certainly it is not an answer to raid
Leader Pelosi. If I just may say, part of our For the People agenda is to build the infrastructure of our country, to create bigger paychecks, to build the infrastructure of our country. So this is not just about responding, it's about anticipation and thinking in terms of the future in a bigger way.
And if I just may say in terms of
Do you want to speak to that, the privatization?
The point being is we want the privatization to be a Puerto Rican product and not dictated by the Interior Committee to say what company in
Q: May I ask a question on another topic?
Leader Pelosi. Are we finished with our questions on
Again, let me thank our colleagues for their tremendous leadership. On the plane, my plane was very, very late yesterday, but I did see [Congressman]
But all of our colleagues care very much, know a great deal about this subject, are prepared to act, and we know and try to do so in a bipartisan way to help the people of
But, again, we don't want anybody to think for one moment, as they had to think during Sandy when very few
Yes, sir" Thank you.
Q: Thank you. I wanted to ask you about some allegations that are facing
Leader Pelosi. Oh, do you want to answer these questions, my colleagues" They're delegating to me.
Q: So there are some new allegations of sexual misconduct against
But I'm just wondering whether you've spoken to your colleagues, Congresswoman
Leader Pelosi. I have not seen such a letter. I do know that
Q: If I may ask more broadly, what sort of impact do you think that these allegations should have -
Leader Pelosi. I have no idea.
Q: - on his nomination?
Leader Pelosi. I have no idea. You just told me more than I knew on the subject. What I know is what's in the public domain. I'm unaware of a
Q: Yes.
Leader Pelosi. Okay, so I haven't even seen that. But nonetheless, as the Senator - Ranking Member Feinstein said last night, she has passed it on to the authorities and they have said that they have passed it on to the
I'm eager to go see what that article is. I mean, it's very sad, but I'm learning more from you now than I've known.
Yes, sir?
Q: Just a couple of questions.
Leader Pelosi. Well, we'll see. It's up to these guys if it's one or two.
Q: I'll let you make the decision.
Why do you think it is that in a
Leader Pelosi. You're asking me why the
Q: Why hasn't it happened" Why hasn't the money been made available to construct the wall?
Leader Pelosi. Why hasn't the money been made available to construct the wall" Well, maybe it's because the wall is a complete indecency. It's ineffective. It not the appropriate way to ?? if you ever went to the border, you would see that it's a community with a border going through it.
Should we protect our borders" We have a responsibility to do that, and there's technology and innovative solutions to do that. Some of us do not see a wall as the solution. That's why I would not be for it. I think we've used our leverage in our negotiation to say there are better ways to protect our borders, all of our borders, north and south, and our coastal borders as well. A wall is not an answer for that.
Q: And can I ask, now that primary season -
Leader Pelosi. What is your affiliation?
Q: It is
Leader Pelosi. Thank you.
Q: Now that primary season is over, what do you say to candidates who stood on a platform that they wouldn't support your being Speaker?
Leader Pelosi. Let me just say this to you. I'm not here to talk politics today. We have people suffering with storms and all the rest, we're to talk about
Yes?
Q: Quick question. Our sources say that in the coming days there may be a new
Leader Pelosi. Well, this morning I asked my staff to see how we could set up some briefings for our colleagues so that we can actually see what is in the arrangement. Any arrangement of that kind, of that length of being in effect should be subjected to some scrutiny, I think. We certainly would like to see more in terms of lifting wages in
But we have to see it, you know. And my understanding is the following, that whatever it is now, if
So we'll have our sessions, as we did, as we do, on these subjects. We're very well served by our Chairman of the Committee,
Q: Is a
Leader Pelosi. Well, I think it should be trilateral. I don't see how you can say 'We renegotiated
Yes, ma'am?
Q: I would be interested to hear your opinion. You talk about suffering. As a Catholic American in a prominent position what do you think of the current sexual abuse crisis, and is it being handled in the best way possible right now?
Leader Pelosi. Well, as a practicing Catholic, I feel great sadness for what has happened in the church. I feel sadness for what it means to the church writ large, but more sad about what it means to the individuals who have been abused, and that they should be respected, protected, and that we have to get to the bottom of it.
And I would hope that what His Holiness is putting forth now will result in this meeting that he's going to have in February in Rome, would get to the heart of the matter.
And
First it was like
I've seen friends who had the most devotion to the church be the most disappointed in it. But I think we have to stay strong because we are, in our view, the Eucharist, the body of Christ, we are all part of the church. And if we have some cancerous elements there we have to remove all doubt, again, that that will not be how we proceed. It's very sad.
Yes, sir" This will be the last question.
Q: Just following up on that, is there a sense that the church can self'police here" There is going to be this meeting in Rome and they are promising reforms in all of this, but clearly there is an investigative and a law enforcement component and State AGs have taken on that role in
Is there a congressional role here at all" Is there any type of oversight" Because right now it's a very piecemeal, state'by'state investigative regime happening. What's
Leader Pelosi. Well, I haven't seen any suggestions for anything in the
You see what was just released in
But there should be no doubt, there should be no doubt that if there is a reason to believe that this happened, that it be turned over to law enforcement.
Q: But, I mean, isn't that the concerns, that they have not been transparent at all, that they've buried all of these cases?
Leader Pelosi. No, but it's been shameful. And I don't think that a number of people who had responsibility - for example,
So there really has to be a brighter light shining on this. Again, I keep using the term remove all doubt. This isn't what the church is about. And, again, as big as all of it is, I still trust and believe that it's a small percentage of what the good is that is happening in the church and with our clergy and the rest. But only the facts will tell us that.
Q: But the bright light can come from within then.
Leader Pelosi. Well, I think it can come from within. And I would like to see some women at the table, too, when they do these reviews, because they are just - not that women are better than men, it's just a different perspective, a different perspective, a different experience.
And we're talking about in many cases young people. Even if they're young seminarians, we're talking about young people who trust and then are betrayed. It's very, very sad.
But we have to be prayerful and we have to hold everyone to a high standard, including those who are reviewing the tragedy of what has happened, happened to the church.
There are still - I mean, I still know people who say, oh, gee - because they are so protective, the church is on the ropes, we shouldn't be attacking. Just, well, no, the people who did this are on the ropes. We can make that distinction between those who violated their responsibilities, their faith really, and the dignity and the worth of every person.
It's a very interesting time and I've tried to encourage people to be prayerful within the church and we'll make a judgment when we see what comes. I'm hopeful that what His Holiness is calling for will have the results that hopefully it is intended to do.
But they should have no thought that anything less than a complete change is anything that would be acceptable. How that happens, we'll see when they make the review of it. But it can't be done in a way that is protective of this or that or the other thing, it's about the church.
And everything that we do has to be about renewal, redemption, taking us to a better place. This is a terribly sad, sad tragedy, but it shouldn't diminish our faith. Faith is a gift, not everybody has it.
And so, depending on how strong it is in you, you may have a reaction that is very negative on the church because your faith is so deep. So it behooves our church leadership to - I keep using the same expression, you remove all doubt that this is not what the church is about. It's heartbreaking, but we have to be prayerful.
Thank you.
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