Here's my very long and wordy Instagram carousel on calling our House members to pressure Speaker Johnson into acting on additional disaster relief: www.instagram.com/p/DA9eFP1ySN... And attaching the core script to this post.
![YOU: Hi, my name is [NAME]. I’m calling from [ZIP CODE].
YOU: I’m calling to ask [HOUSE MEMBER] to call on Speaker Johnson to call a vote on hurricane relief. With the devastation from Hurricane Helene and now Hurricane Milton, it’s clear that more resources are needed for all those impacted.
——
FOR REPUBLICAN HOUSE MEMBERS: Yes, I’m aware that before Congress left, they voted in a stop-gap bill which included $20 billion for FEMA’s Disaster Relief Fund. But they didn’t take up the supplemental request for disaster relief. The disaster relief fund is operating with limited funding right now - with half of the $20 billion already spent - while CDBG-DR, the SBA’s disaster loans program, and the FHA’s disaster recovery account are also in dire need of funds.
FOR REPUBLICAN HOUSE MEMBERS: While FEMA has confirmed they have the resources to address both Helene and Milton, I think [HOUSE MEMBER] knows very well that hurricane season is far from over. Congress needs to do the right thing and return to D.C. NOW to ensure continued support for current recovery efforts, and to allocate the funds to address future disasters. Speaker Johnson’s plan of returning in the middle of November, simply won’t work.
——
YOU: I understand that Congress is currently in recess, but there is a precedent for this situation. Congress can easily allow for unanimous consent on additional disaster relief funding, similar to how funding was passed in 2005 in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. This would mean that the majority of members would not have to return to DC.
YOU: I’d like a response from [HOUSE MEMBER] explaining what steps they’re taking on my request, and how they will ensure that all those impacted by Helene and Milton are getting the support they need.](https://cdn.bsky.app/img/feed_fullsize/plain/did:plc:vdabazxnghujbebpi2ektqgi/bafkreibr55c2zgkivcna4ldxnpbedm4n6bhoj3aygu76yavux7c67mca2m@jpeg)
It's been a busy first week back in Westminster after the Conference Recess, from the Chamber to the makeshift podcast studio in my Parliamentary office, and all the many committee rooms in between!
Recess has *~*adaptogens*~* aka magnesium and some herbs that trigger tryptophan production, so it gives the feeling of mellowing out that most NA things miss for me
Recess canned ones will be right up your alley btw, meant to bring some to dinner
@CBSNews: President Biden is calling on Congress to return from recess early and "move as rapidly as they can" to replenish emergency funding, particularly for the disaster relief fund for small business loans. "Congress should be coming back and moving on emergency needs immediately," https://t.co
i extremely hate these people who live by the middle school and own what sounds like eleven or more dogs that all lose their absolute minds when there's kids outside at every drop-off recess PE class and pick-up and make the whole neighborhood just reverberate with barking and howling
Recess.
“At recess, we shared a global selection of snacks from tangy fruit leather to paper-thin roasted seaweed.” As Christopher Cheung got older, his sense of shared community got stronger. But were these stories being told in the news? Nope. An excerpt.
An excerpt from Tyee reporter Chris Cheung’s ‘Under the White Gaze.’
Though I don’t have a lot of time for Coleridge in general, these lines have long stuck with me: And though thou notest from thy safe recess Old friends burn dim, like lamps in noisome air, Love them for what they are; nor love them less, Because to thee they are not what they were.
