Charlie Melancon: “When Michelle tells her boys about their dad, she's not going to show them a pay stub. She will tell them how much their…”

“When Michelle tells her boys about their dad, she's not going to show them a pay stub. She will tell them how much their father loved them. I want to say how offensive it is when the law recognizes only pecuniary loss in cases like these 11 deaths. Please believe me; no amount of money can ever compensate us for Gordon's death. We know that. But this is the only means available to begin to make things right, and to make them right for Michelle and the two boys. Mr. Speaker, 11 men died in the explosion aboard the Deepwater Horizon oil rig, and as a 90-year old law stands now, the families that lost their loved ones cannot hold those responsible for the harm they have caused them. I have met with the family members of those workers and have seen the pain on their faces. While we cannot relieve these families from the unimaginable grief they will go through for the rest of their lives--losing a husband, a father, a brother, and a son--we fix a law that's clearly outdated and wrong.”