Short Attention Span
The American media and current politicians have many things in common, among them the belief that Americans have short attention spans. The result is that Americans rarely see the ending of stories that affect us all. Plenty of ink was spilled for about two weeks after Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast. The stories showed not only the damage caused by the storm but also the damage caused by the inept governmental response to the storm. A major city was completely wiped out, and we heard about it in detail. Since then? Eh, not so much.
Congress and the administration made a lot of vague promises to the Gulf Coast residents, many of whom are still living in hotels and temporary shelters, without jobs, without money. Not much has happened since those promises have been made. New Orleans, for example, can't really start the massive reconstruction required until the levees are repaired or rebuilt. While Congress found time to pass tax cuts to the rich to the tune of $75 billion, it simply couldn't find the funds required to do the work on the levees, which would be roughly half of the money given back to the rich.
An editorial in the NY Times comments on one tiny baby-step taken by the House of Representatives which will help alleviate the worries of those who are still suffering.
In the rush before Congress's holiday break, the competition for space on the legislative calendar is fierce. But before they leave the capital, House and Senate leaders need to hold a vote on a bill to bolster unemployment benefits for the people left unemployed by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
To its credit, the House committee in charge of the matter unanimously passed a good bill last week. ...
The bill would also commit the federal government to extending hurricane-related unemployment benefits for an additional 26 weeks, if needed, when those benefits start to expire toward the end of February. We hope that many of the people who still lack jobs because of the hurricanes will be back at work by then. But if not, the least the country can do is give them the peace of mind of knowing that they won't be cut off.
The House bill to improve disaster unemployment benefits is utterly noncontroversial. But its lack of controversy appears to be a disadvantage. In the waning days of this Congressional session, divisive, headline-grabbing measures - like tax cuts and oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska - are eclipsing bipartisan efforts.
The House speaker, Dennis Hastert, and the Senate majority leader, Bill Frist, mustn't let that continue. Using special procedures for unopposed bills, both the House and the Senate could pass the House's disaster-unemployment bill by week's end, and the president could then sign it into law. There is still time to do this before Christmas, but there is no time to waste.
The extension of unemployment benefits and providing a floor for those benefits is only a temporary help and is clearly a drop in the bucket for what is needed. What passage of that bill might do, however, is remind Congress of the promises made to New Orleans and the rest of the Gulf Coast, promises they must start keeping.
Congress and the administration made a lot of vague promises to the Gulf Coast residents, many of whom are still living in hotels and temporary shelters, without jobs, without money. Not much has happened since those promises have been made. New Orleans, for example, can't really start the massive reconstruction required until the levees are repaired or rebuilt. While Congress found time to pass tax cuts to the rich to the tune of $75 billion, it simply couldn't find the funds required to do the work on the levees, which would be roughly half of the money given back to the rich.
An editorial in the NY Times comments on one tiny baby-step taken by the House of Representatives which will help alleviate the worries of those who are still suffering.
In the rush before Congress's holiday break, the competition for space on the legislative calendar is fierce. But before they leave the capital, House and Senate leaders need to hold a vote on a bill to bolster unemployment benefits for the people left unemployed by Hurricanes Katrina and Rita.
To its credit, the House committee in charge of the matter unanimously passed a good bill last week. ...
The bill would also commit the federal government to extending hurricane-related unemployment benefits for an additional 26 weeks, if needed, when those benefits start to expire toward the end of February. We hope that many of the people who still lack jobs because of the hurricanes will be back at work by then. But if not, the least the country can do is give them the peace of mind of knowing that they won't be cut off.
The House bill to improve disaster unemployment benefits is utterly noncontroversial. But its lack of controversy appears to be a disadvantage. In the waning days of this Congressional session, divisive, headline-grabbing measures - like tax cuts and oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska - are eclipsing bipartisan efforts.
The House speaker, Dennis Hastert, and the Senate majority leader, Bill Frist, mustn't let that continue. Using special procedures for unopposed bills, both the House and the Senate could pass the House's disaster-unemployment bill by week's end, and the president could then sign it into law. There is still time to do this before Christmas, but there is no time to waste.
The extension of unemployment benefits and providing a floor for those benefits is only a temporary help and is clearly a drop in the bucket for what is needed. What passage of that bill might do, however, is remind Congress of the promises made to New Orleans and the rest of the Gulf Coast, promises they must start keeping.
posted by Diane at 4:36 AM
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