On the recordSeptember 6, 2017
The chairman is very kind. Let me thank the chairman and the ranking member of the subcommittee. If I might just take one moment and I will conclude taking your gracious offer. First, I would like to acknowledge that this amendment is supported by the trade unions, the TTD. I thank them very much for their support. Mr. Chairman, I include in the Record the article about our rebuilding. [From the Washington Post, Aug. 28, 2017] Nation's Fourth-Largest City Struggles to Get Moving Again After Harvey (By Ashley Halsey III, Michael Laris, Martine Powers and Luz Lazo) Cleanup and flooding in Texas continue in wake of Hurricane Harvey. Under the threat of more rain and flooding this week, the regional hub that is Houston faced the daunting prospect of clearing mud-swept roadways, opening two of the nation's busiest airports and resuming operations at the country's second-busiest port. Many streets remained impassable, with water more than waist-high. Those highways not flooded too often led to others that were. And officials said it was too soon to say when the transit system would resume operations. Houston is a city that for the past eight years led the nation in growth, and although transit was considered to have its place, the city's backbone is the oil industry, which relies heavily on new highways to get around town. When the city spread out into Harris County--which has 6.5 million people to the city's 2 million--the connections were roadways.…
