Public Employee Press

2012 ELECTION
Danger at home, danger abroad
Beware the Republican response to Natural disasters

Natural disasters come with a huge price tag.

The city's Metropolitan Transit Authority sought $65 million from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for the cost of repairing last year's damage from Tropical Storm Irene, which did severe damage to subway tracks and yards. Yet, after a series of destructive storms last year, the Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives - including Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney's running mate - insisted that any additional costs in the budget of FEMA be offset by cuts in other programs.

Between 2010 and 2012, House Republicans reduced FEMA primary grants by 43 percent - $1.8 billion that's not available for disaster preparedness.

In Paul Ryan's "Path to Prosperity" budget plan, which Romney supports, the cost of things like emergency management would be passed along to the states, which in most cases are in an even tighter financial bind than Washington.

In 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast. Major federal funding was required for flood control structures.

Yet, since 2009, the budget of the Army Corps of Engineers has been cut by 21 percent because of Republican pressure.

After Hurricane Issac hit the Gulf Coast during the Republican National Convention, Romney went from accepting his party's nomination to a tour of the devastation caused by the storm in Louisiana.

Romney encouraged people to solicit aid from FEMA. In reality, if the Romney-Ryan ticket takes office, there will be precious little in the way of emergency funds for cleaning up or preparing for future storms.

—Jane LaTour

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