[StBernard] [LANDRIEU] Landrieu Op-Ed on WRDA

[Westley Annis]

Landrieu Op-Ed on WRDA
Published today on Capitol Hill website.

 

WASHINGTON - An op-ed by United States Senator Mary L. Landrieu, D-La., was
today published on the website of The Hill, a Capitol Hill newspaper. The
op-ed appears below and here: http://tinyurl.com/yt58ew.

"The Senate is expected to vote as early as today to override the
President's veto of the Water Resources Development Act (WRDA), a crucial
vote for the safety and prosperity of the Louisiana and the entire nation.
Yesterday, the House marshaled the necessary two-thirds majority to buck the
President's misguided stand. 

"While this bill is scheduled to pass every two years, it has been stuck in
gridlock for the last seven. Demonstrated by the catastrophic collapse of
levees in the New Orleans region two years ago and the recent Minnesota
bridge collapse, our nation's infrastructure is badly in need of repair. As
a percentage of our GDP, we spend one-tenth as much on infrastructure as we
did 70 years ago. By making vital investments in our levee systems and water
resources infrastructure, including our flood protection and wetland
restoration, we will be taking necessary steps toward an answer to this
imposing challenge. Furthermore, tens of thousands of Louisiana jobs, and
millions of American jobs rely on our ability to get American goods to
market quickly and efficiently. This Water Resources Act will maintain
America's competitive edge by strengthening our ports and global avenues of
commerce.

"The Louisiana delegation, Republicans and Democrats, all have united behind
WRDA. The bill authorizes $7 billion for Louisiana, as estimated by the
Congressional Budget Office, and is a lifeline for coastal communities that
are increasingly vulnerable to rising sea levels and storm surges.
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita dumped 217 square miles of coastal wetlands into
the Gulf of Mexico, an area 3.5 times the size of Washington, D.C. This bill
works to reverse wetland loss with an historic commitment to coastal
restoration that includes $1.9 billion in authorizations for Louisiana
Coastal Area Ecosystem Restoration projects (LCA).

"It also authorizes $886 million for the "Morganza to the Gulf" hurricane
protection project. When complete, it will provide storm protection to
Terrebonne and Lafourche parishes, home to more than 200,000 Louisianians
who have waited too long for Congress' promise to be fulfilled. They stand
watch over a massive national energy infrastructure that produces, processes
and transports nearly a quarter of America's oil and natural gas and about
20 percent of our imported oil. Energy production in Louisiana keeps the
lights on all over the United States, but the continued loss of Louisiana
wetlands, in turn, critically endangers our nation's energy security.

"The President, who has rung up $3 trillion in federal debt since he took
office, said he vetoed the $23 billion bill because it 'lacks fiscal
discipline.' He is correct that an investment in our national infrastructure
is expensive. However, the cost of this bill is the result of not enacting a
bill in seven years. The price tag is in line with what would have been
spent over this period if a WRDA bill had been signed into law every two
years as intended, and the price of inaction is far greater, as witnessed by
the more than $150 billion and climbing cost of Katrina and Rita recovery. 

"The Senate has the chance to successfully override this veto, demonstrating
the necessary commitment to America's core infrastructure. It will also show
Congress' dedication to giving Louisiana the hurricane and flood protection
it needs to prevent another catastrophe. Let's give a green light to these
projects and start turning dirt. Our people need protection now. The Senate
can triumph over partisan politics and work to fulfill this promise."

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