Mitch Landrieu: “I come to the floor with my ranking member and leader on this issue, Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, to speak for a…”

“I come to the floor with my ranking member and leader on this issue, Senator John Kerry of Massachusetts, to speak for a few moments about a bill the two of us are going to introduce today, the Gulf Coast Open for Business Act of 2006, by Senators Landrieu, Kerry and others. Let me first commend my colleague and thank him for joining me here today. He will be giving more details about the act, which he has worked with my staff and others to craft, so let me add some personal perspective. I stand here again, on behalf of the people of Louisiana, and the whole gulf coast, who have just been devastated by the two most powerful storms to ever hit the United States in recorded history, and as you yourself know, because you were down in the gulf and have been a frequent champion for our cause. It is still hard, though, to describe to our colleagues the current situation there. Not only were these two hurricanes quite powerful, at some point category 4 and 5, which are killer storms, but just as devastating was the flooding that ensued by the collapse of the Federal levee system--a collapse because of inadequate engineering. Both the hurricanes and the flooding have literally devastated a major metropolitan area which sits in the heart of America's only energy coast, the gulf coast, and has been devastating to large and small businesses alike. We are here today to talk about our small businesses and their struggle for survival.…”