Political Quotes

“last week, two back-to-back storms brought the most catastrophic flooding Hawaii has seen in over 20 years: landslides, washed-out roads, emergency evacuations, and destruction in every single county. What we saw during these Kona lows was a hard truth: Nature will find a way, and water will go where she wants. We grew up preparing for hurricane season. That was a threat that we knew. Now, disasters don't wait their turn. Hawaii experiences wildfires and floods year-round. What we are experiencing today is more than our infrastructure was ever built to handle. I saw it firsthand. Roads ripped apart as water surged through storm drains too small to contain it. Four feet of rock and silt slammed against guardrails, pushed down from the mountains. Fields flattened where water jumped its bank, bypassed overgrown ditches, and raced toward the ocean. In its path were homes, cars, farms, hospitals, schools, churches, entire communities, our 'family'; 'ohana.' Madam Speaker, even in our darkest hour, I also saw Hawaii at its very best: neighbors showing up for our neighbors, no one waiting to be asked; volunteers feeding families; and first responders and healthcare workers going above and beyond. That is aloha. That is who we are. Now, we must match that same spirit with action.”