Chris Christie Blames Congress for Unfinished Sandy Repairs

A year after Superstorm Sandy devastated the Eastern U.S. coastline, and thousands of distraught residents still trying to fix their ravaged communities, New Jersey Governor Chris Christie admitted on MSNBC’s Morning Joe  that recovery has been slow. What’s more, there is still a lot to do and repairs could take up to 24 months. 

Efforts to lessen the burden on beleaguered Jersey residents have been delayed because, according to Christie, Congress failed to pass a funding bill until January and money was not available until May. He cited, “It took 92 days for the Congress to act on aid for Sandy victims — that’s unprecedented… It was 10 days for Katrina, and 17 days for Gustav.” 

So far, $60 billion has been has allocated for Sandy victims and cleanup operations. In addition, $10 billion has been paid to the National Flood Insurance Program.

Also appearing on Morning Joe, New York Senator Charles Schumer (D-NY) also confessed that unattended damages in his state were due to Congress’s failure to act swiftly. Politicizing the crisis, Schumer injected references to the mishandling of Hurricane Katrina which occurred during the George W. Bush administration: “We tried to learn from Katrina’s mistakes, and I think you are going to find in this second year that homeowners will be made whole.”

Christie also remarked in a separate interview on Good Morning America that he is committed to being “the best governor New Jersey can have for as long as I can possibly do it,” but that he could not commit to fulfilling a second term as New Jersey Governor, as a potential 2016 run for President could get in the way. He indicated that he does not have a “…crystal ball and know what’s going to happen in the future.”