Zero Hedge
August 29, 2017
The totality of the damage from Hurricane Harvey isn’t yet known, and as it continues to rain in Texas and Louisiana, it will likely be a few days before officials can start tallying up the damage but President Donald Trump has already promised Texans that he will swiftly pass an emergency funding bill to help offset what’s likely to be tens of billions of dollars in damages.
But while Trump may hope that emergency funding is swiftly approved, Bloomberg points out that Congress has final say over the details of any relief bill. And lawmakers, who are not only facing a particularly hectic legislative calendar next month but don’t have the – let’s just say – best relationship with Trump these days, might not get the job done as quickly as the president would like.
According to Bloomberg, conservative lawmakers could turn obstructionist unless the plan is offset by domestic spending cuts.
“After previous storms, lawmakers have usually demanded detailed spending plans for emergency funds, while conservatives have argued that disaster funding should be offset by domestic spending cuts. With Harvey still expected to dump rain over Texas and Louisiana for several days, the full scope of the damage isn’t yet known.”
While Trump said he’s already spoken with members of Congress, he has yet to submit a formal spending request for additional relief funds.
“The real number, which will be many billions of dollars, will go through Congress,” Trump said Monday at a news conference ahead of a planned visit Tuesday to Texas to meet with local officials involved in the response. “It will happen very quickly.”
Meanwhile, at least one Texas lawmaker has promised to add relief measures to a temporary spending bill that must be passed if Republicans want to avert a government shutdown after the current spending resolution expires on Sept. 30….