Posted on 10/16/2006 11:12:59 AM PDT by SwinneySwitch
6 U.S. congressmen visit, discuss funding
Five Corpus Christi-area community leaders told six visiting members of Congress that the area needs money and expertise to educate the workforce; build or repair infrastructure; medically insure residents and help bring more military missions.
One question remained unanswered: where to find the money.
The community leaders and congressmen met as a result of the State of the Federal Government in South Texas summit Friday at the Congressman Solomon P. Ortiz International Center.
The congressmen came at the invitation of Rep. Solomon P. Ortiz, D-Corpus Christi.
The meeting with community leaders followed a luncheon at the Ortiz center attended by an estimated 800 people. The luncheon was sponsored by the port and the Corpus Christi Chamber of Commerce.
Ortiz said the bottom line is money, but the deficit, national debt and war effort make money hard to reallocate. He also said there was a misspending of federal funds, but Congress would try to meet the area's needs.
"There's no oversight committee and we need an investigating committee to see where the money is going," Ortiz said. "Until then, these congressmen serve on different committees that can get the area going in a good direction. Legislation for this area is a good start."
The other congressmen were U.S. Reps. Ike Skelton, D-Mo., in line to chair the House Armed Services Committee if the Democrats win a majority in November; Joe Baca, D-Calif., member of the Financial Services Committee and the Agriculture Committee; Jerry F. Costello, D-Ill., member of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee and Science Committee; Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, member of the Agriculture and Budget committees; and Xavier Becerra, D-Calif., member of the Ways and Means Committee.
Ortiz and others noted that the visitors made the trip to Corpus Christi with the Nov. 7 election less than a month away, when they could have been in their home districts campaigning for re-election.
Baca and Cuellar agreed that Congress should focus on health and education, two areas typically cut when funding other areas.
"I think you will see more funding in these areas in the coming years," Cuellar said.
Contact Fanny S. Chirinos at 886-3759 or chirinosf@ caller.com
Could the answer possibly be to Raise Our Taxes, Fanny?!?
(Note: Congressman Solomon P. Ortiz (D)received Rush Limbaugh's Katie Couric Award for asking the stupidest questions.)
Not to mention we need a million gazillion Federal dollars fresh from the taxpayers so we can rebuild New Orleans. America's college students need a place where they can get drunk below sea level during Spring Break.
What's wrong with Corpus Christi (or Texas) solving Corpus Christi's problems?
Ortiz should be concentrating on lowering federal taxes so there is less of a federal burden on Texans so they have more money to take care of their own problems instead of running to the federal government.
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