Congressman Ron Klein weekly report

Published April 14th, 2008

By John Johnston
Managing Editor

U.S. Representative Ron Klein (FL-22), a member of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, this week joined his House colleagues to hear testimony from Army General David Petraeus and U.S. Ambassador to Iraq Ryan Crocker.

Klein called both Petraeus and Crocker “honorable public servants,” but questioned the strategy of suspending indefinitely any troop drawdown in Iraq.

“General Petraeus and Ambassador Crocker are honorable public servants, but today before our committee, they continued to advocate a strategy of more of the same - calling for more money, more time, and more sacrifice from our soldiers and their families,” Klein said. “Yet the American people, and many of us in Congress, believe it is time for a strategic shift when it comes to our Iraq policy.”

Klein noted that while families in South Florida and across the country are tightening belts due to the costs of gas and groceries, the United States continue to spend $339 million every day reconstructing Iraq.

“At a time when the Iraqi government is raking in billions of dollars in oil revenue, the American people are rightfully asking why we are continuing to foot the bill for their reconstruction,” Klein said.

Also this week, Klein took part in discussions on ways to address the mortgage crisis and assist homeowners who can no longer make payments.  Klein is a member of the House Financial Service Committee, which held hearings on the topic Wednesday and Thursday.

“This week’s meetings of the House Financial Services Committee were extremely productive,” Klein said. “It is critical that we work in a bipartisan manner to craft a real solution for homeowners that are struggling. While it is not the role of Congress to bail out speculators, we can assist families who are in over their heads and communities facing the cascading effect of foreclosures.”

A draft House Democratic plan, developed by the House Financial Services Committee, would make available up to $300 billion in federally insured loans to help troubled homeowners refinance risky adjustable-rate mortgages into more affordable 30-year, fixed-rate loans. This plan will help approximately 1.5 million American homeowners avoid foreclosure. 

On the House floor this week, Klein strongly supported the Safety of Seniors Act (S. 845), which provides grant money to help prevent falls and repeat falls, a critical health issues for citizens 65 and over. The U.S. Senate previously passed the bill, so House of Representatives passage on Tuesday sent it to the President’s desk for signature. Klein urged President Bush to sign this bill into law.