111th Congress, 2nd Session
The House returning from its summer recess to provide funding to the victims of Hurricane Katrina
September 02, 2005
On this date, the House and Senate returned to Washington early from their summer recess to provide financial aid to the Gulf Coast in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Deriving from Article I, Section 5, Clause 4 of the U. S. Constitution, congressional leaders have the authority to recall Congress “whenever the public interest shall warrant it.” The House and Senate had scheduled a recess from late July to September 6, 2005, via H. Con. Res. 225. However, Speaker J. Dennis Hastert of Illinois and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist of Tennessee called both houses of Congress back into session to provide economic aid to the Gulf Coast. Both legislative bodies convened on September 2, 2005 and passed H. R. 3645 (PL 109-61), a $10.5 billion emergency aid package for the region. The swift action was, in part, a response to criticism that the federal relief response had been slow and uncoordinated after Katrina made landfall on August 29. During that session, Representative Rob Simmons of Connecticut commented, “It it critical that we deliver this help today, and we have. Katrina hit the Gulf Coast, but this is not just a Gulf Coast disaster.” Representative Tom Lantos of California said, “Americans can be proud of the hard and sometime heart-rending work being done by local, state and federal emergency workers.” Lantos noted, “Those who were watching the news reports, as well as those . . . in the midst of the devastation, were united in one question: Why did the rescue efforts take so long?” Congresswoman Julia Carson of Indiana asked Members to get involved, “we need to take a trip to the gulf, meet the people there, help serve the homeless, help serve the hungry, take clothes. . . . We need to be personally involved ourselves. And we need to get on the road right away.”
Related Highlight Subjects
Cite this Highlight
Office of History and Preservation, Office of the Clerk, http://clerk.house.gov/art_history/highlights.html?action=view&intID=503, (December 08, 2010).For Additional Information
Office of History and Preservation(202) 226-1300
history@mail.house.gov
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Serving as Speaker of the House from 1999 to 2007, J. Dennis Hastert of Illinois retired after 11 terms of service in the House of Representatives.
Oil on canvas, Laurel Boeck, 2008, Collection of U.S. House of Representatives
Teaching Tip
Wielding the Gavel
Ask students to locate three stories pertaining to Speakers of the House. Have students select and conduct research on one of the Speakers using historical highlights and the Biographical Directory bibliography.
