Two of Senator Marco Rubio’s (R-FL) former chiefs of staff, Cesar Conda and Alberto Martinez, make the case as to “Why Washington should finally make Puerto Rico a state” as first reported in POLITICO. The former senior staffers to one of only only a few Hispanic Senators reiterate the moral grounds: civil rights, support of the… Read more »

According to early estimates, Puerto Rico lot some 8,000 acres of vegetables in the destruction brought by Hurricanes Irma and Maria. That’s roughly 13,000 farms and a large part of the $780 million in crop loss, by official estimates from the Secretary of Agriculture. A group of scientists has a plan to help replace the… Read more »

On Monday Oct. 16, Senator Bill Nelson (D-FL), having just returned from Puerto Rico, offered compelling remarks about his visit for his Senate colleagues: Sen. Bill Nelson (D-FL): Madam President, I want to talk about a matter of life and death. It is happening, as we speak, in Puerto Rico. I went there yesterday. I didn’t… Read more »

The Puerto Rico Financial Oversight and Management Board “is actively working to assess how” the 10-year fiscal adjustment plans for the Government of Puerto Rico and several of its instrumentalities that it adopted “should change in the aftermath of Hurricanes Irma and Maria.” In a letter released Saturday, the Board wrote  to eleven Democratic U.S. Senators… Read more »

On October 5, 2017, Rep. Gary Palmer (R-AL) introduced legislation to exempt Puerto Rico from the Jones Act for five years (H.R. 3966). The bill has three bipartisan cosponsors: Rep. Nydia Velazquez (D-NY), Rep. Andy Biggs (R-AZ), and Rep. Dave Brat (R-VA). In addition to creating an exemption to the Jones Act, the bill also… Read more »

Last Thursday morning, President Trump stated on Twitter that the federal government cannot be in Puerto Rico “forever”. Trump tweeted the following: “Electric and all infrastructure was disaster before hurricanes. Congress to decide how much to spend,” the president tweeted, adding: “We cannot keep FEMA, the Military & the First Responders, who have been amazing… Read more »

Numerous Members of Congress have pledged they would treat the United States territories of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands as equal partners to the states in terms of disaster assistance, and on Oct. 12 the House of Representatives made progress in upholding that pledge when it approved a $36.5 billion relief bill. The… Read more »

On October 11, 2017, Representative Mark Walker (R-NC) sent a letter to his colleagues expressing his concerns regarding the disaster relief legislation proposed on Tuesday. Rep. Mark Walker identifies the need to help people in need after a disaster. However, “I struggle with the notion that in doing so we must abandon our prudence and… Read more »

On Wednesday Oct. 11, Puerto Rico Governor Ricardo Rossello was interviewed by Neil Cavuto of Fox Business News. The interview was focused on the relief efforts in Puerto Rico. Cavuto began the interview asking Rossello of the urgency to receive the $5 billion requested by Congress. “We need it as soon as possible. That’s why… Read more »

On Wednesday Oct. 11, Members of the House of Representatives spoke on the House floor to express solidarity with the people of Puerto Rico. The following Representatives gave some remarks: Rep. Luis Gutiérrez (D-IL), Rep. Adriano Espaillat (D-NY), Rep. Glenn Thompson (R-PA), Rep. Al Green (D-TX), Rep. Jared Polis (D-CO), Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee (D-TX),… Read more »