Posts tagged #katrina

Kennedy statement marking 20 years since Hurricane Katrina’s landfall

“To the families who are facing their 20th year of missing a loved one that they lost in the storm, Becky and I are praying for you. All of Louisiana is sending its love.”


MADISONVILLE, La. – Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) today released the following statement marking the 20th year since Hurricane Katrina made landfall in Louisiana and honoring the Louisiana families impacted by the disaster:

“It seems like yesterday. It’s very hard to believe that it’s been 20 years since Hurricane Katrina made landfall in Louisiana. I do, I remember like it was yesterday.

“For many Louisiana families, today marks 20 years since their worlds were turned upside down. More than 1,800 lives lost, 200,000 homes destroyed and $108 [billion] in damage. It was devastating.

“I was serving as Treasurer of Louisiana during Hurricane Katrina. I remember fielding calls from credit-rating agencies and other financial institutions. They wanted to write Louisiana off. They thought we were finished, done. They didn’t know Louisianians. They doubted our ability to come back from Katrina’s destruction.

“But they didn’t know Louisiana like I do, and they didn’t know the people of Louisiana like I do. They didn’t understand the grit and the resilience of Louisiana’s families.

“They didn’t realize that hard times only make us stronger. They didn’t believe we could come back swinging and rebuild from this storm—and it was a mighty storm—and the major storms that have followed in the 20 years since that fateful day.

“It wasn’t easy. It was far from easy, but Louisianians pulled through the destruction. We didn’t let it break us. We might have been bowed a few times, but we never broke.

“On this 20th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, I am proud to be a Louisianian.

“To the families who are facing their 20th year of missing a loved one that they lost in the storm, Becky and I are praying for you. All of Louisiana is sending its love.”

View Kennedy’s full statement here.

Posted on August 29, 2025 and filed under New Orleans, John Kennedy.

DAVID VITTER TAKES ON FEMA ON BEHALF OF VICTIMS OF DISASTER

It’s a shame when a mistake made by the federal government almost a decade ago will haunt taxpayers who have done nothing fraudulent on their part.  It is refreshing to see at least one person in Washington stand up to the feds.  With the amount of waste that is created on a daily basis in Washington on other activities, the Obama administration needs to focus their attention elsewhere.  FEMA has become nothing more than another bureaucracy that has become a bullying arm of this administration.

“All these cases we’re talking about, are my definition, FEMA mistakes and FEMA screw-ups.  And then they’re trying to go after people, and again, in virtually every case.  This money is spent on legitimate purposes, so this means that people in a hole would have to borrow money in a desperate situation to try to come up with these dollars that FEMA is going after,” said Senator David Vitter.

Source: New Legislation Aims To Help Disaster Victims Avoid Repaying FEMA

Posted on February 11, 2015 .