GOP tells Puerto Rico they gets too much storm assistance

Disaster aid bill hits snag after Trump tells GOP Puerto Rico gets too much storm assistance

By MARIANNE LEVINE and BURGESS EVERETT

A massive disaster aid bill is in doubt in the Senate, caught between Senate Democrats pushing for more assistance for Puerto Rico and President Donald Trump’s criticism that the U.S. territory is already receiving too much hurricane aid.

The Senate voted 90-10 on Tuesday to advance multibillion-dollar legislation aimed at providing relief to areas that have been hit hard by hurricanes, wildfires and flooding. But final passage is now uncertain, with Senate Democrats calling for changes to the bill after Trump reportedly told Republicans at a Senate lunch Tuesday that Puerto Rico, which was struck by two hurricanes in 2017, was getting too much money in the disaster aid bill.

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) privately warned Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard Shelby (R-Ala.) that his caucus could turn on the bill if Puerto Rico is not granted more aid, according to a source familiar with the conversation.

Democrats have given Republicans three counteroffers to pass the legislation, according to a senior Democratic aide, including an amendment from Senate Appropriations ranking member Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.) that requires the Department of Housing and Urban Development to release billions in community grant money for Puerto Rico.

“It appears that the President will not accept even this reasonable offer,” Leahy said in a statement Wednesday. “Instead, he will endanger the entire disaster package because he wants to pick winners and losers. He wants to decide who gets assistance in the wake of disasters based on his own arbitrary standards, and political grudges.”

Other options Democrats have offered include passing legislation already approved by the House or passing a shell appropriations bill and negotiating further in conference.

Republican aides said Democrats will not get what they are demanding because the president will not support it. They said that Trump opposed the $600 million in nutritional assistance for Puerto Rico in the bill initially, but agreed to go along with it to get it passed. But he will not support any additional funding for the island, they said.

The $13 billion bill is crucial to a number of Southern states hit by recent storms and is led by Sen. David Perdue (R-Ga.), a conservative senator who could face a competitive reelection campaign. It also includes money for states affected by recent Midwestern storms, including Iowa, the first presidential caucus state next year.