Latino political strategist responds to Puerto Rico jokes at Trump MSG rally

(WASHINGTON) — President Joe Biden on Thursday joined growing calls from Democrats and even one Republican to bring Congress back to pass certain additional disaster aid funding in the wake of the devastation in southeastern states caused by back-to-back hurricanes.

Biden told reporters that the Small Business Administration is “pretty right at the edge now,” and it would take “several billion dollars” to help businesses recover in the affected states.

“I think that Congress should be coming back and moving on emergency needs immediately,” he said, but notably did not say the same about Federal Emergency Management Agency funding before Election Day.

Former President Donald Trump has falsely claimed FEMA has run out of disaster funds because the money was “stolen” to use instead to help migrants, a claim the White House has strongly denied, saying the money comes from separate funding “spigots.”

Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas insisted Thursday that FEMA has enough disaster funding to handle the immediate needs from Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton and related tornado damage.

Even as raised the dire need for more SBA funding, Biden said he has not reached out to House Speaker Mike Johnson about bringing House lawmakers back to Washington.

While Johnson has committed to passing relief after the election, he has resisted pressure from Democrats, especially, to bring the House back before Election Day, explaining it will take time for states to assess the need.

“Congress will provide,” Johnson promised during an interview this past weekend on “Fox News Sunday.” “We will help people in these disaster-prone areas. It’s an appropriate role for the federal government, and you’ll have bipartisan support for that, and it’ll all happen in due time, and we’ll get that job done. There shouldn’t be any concern about that.”

There are similar calls from lawmakers for Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer to reconvene the upper chamber.

Dozens of House Democrats sent a letter to Johnson making their case as he toured damage in western North Carolina on Wednesday with Republican Sens. Thom Tillis and Ted Budd and GOP Rep. Chuck Edwards.

“Recent legislation has provided initial relief funds, yet these provisions fall critically short of what will be necessary to address the scale of destruction and the recovery needs for Fiscal Year 2025. We, therefore, urge you to immediately reconvene the US House of Representatives so that it can pass robust disaster relief funding,” the letter, signed by 63 Democrats, said.

The speaker’s office declined to comment to ABC News directly on the letter, instead referring to Johnson’s public comments on the topic.

Democrats are not alone in their request.

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, a Florida Republican who evacuated her home in Pinellas County, also wants Johnson to bring lawmakers back for a special session.

Luna, who has been spreading misinformation about FEMA funding, posted a statement on X claiming that additional funding would be approved.

“If Congress goes into a special session we can get it passed immediately,” she said.

Mayorkas also stressed the gravity of the situation following a tour of western North Carolina on Thursday.

Although he said that FEMA has the funding to handle hurricanes Helene and Milton and related tornadoes, he said the federal flood insurance program is in the red.

“We are working on a continuing resolution that is not stable footing for the work that we do in disaster response. And so that is why I underscore the need for Congress to act swiftly upon its return,” Mayorkas said.

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After an onslaught of criticism toward the insurance industry following the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., expressed sympathy for the victim, but acknowledged the debate it sparked over inequities in the health care system.

“There is no justification for violence,” Khanna told ABC “This Week” anchor Martha Raddatz. “But the outpouring afterwards has not surprised me.”

Thompson’s killing led to an ongoing massive manhunt for the suspected killer and sparked rampant discussion online about the cost of health care and the insurance industry in the United States.

Khanna said he agrees with the assessment of independent Sen. Bernie Sanders, who wrote: “We waste hundreds of billions a year on health care administrative expenses that make insurance CEOs and wealthy stockholders incredibly rich while 85 million Americans go uninsured or underinsured. Health care is a human right. We need Medicare for All.”

Khanna said that the U.S. should be moving toward Medicare for all.

“After years, Sanders is winning this debate,” Khanna said.

Khanna has said he supports Trump’s efforts to create a “Department of Government Efficiency” to cut wasteful federal spending. The president-elect appointed Elon Musk and Vivek Ramawamy to lead the effort and the pair was on Capitol Hill this week to discuss their plans.

Khanna told Raddatz that “they should look at the extraordinary waste,” examining Medicare and private health costs, as well as defense spending.

“I think when it comes to defense, getting better defense for value and cutting costs, there can be huge bipartisan cooperation,” said Khanna.

The congressman emphasized that cuts to Social Security, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and Medicare should not be on the table.

Despite bipartisan calls to address federal spending, the United States’ debt stands at more than $36 trillion.

Khanna said he has communicated with Musk regarding his cost-cutting efforts and praised the SpaceX founder’s work with the Obama administration for the private sector to engage in space exploration.

Khanna was also asked about his thoughts on the looming possibility of a ban of TikTok in the U.S. unless it finds a new owner following a Federal Appeals Court ruling on Friday that rejected TikTok’s bid to overturn the law.

In previous interviews on “This Week,” Khanna spoke about his opposition to a bill that would require TikTok to divest from its Chinese parent company or face a ban.

“I don’t think it’s going to pass First Amendment scrutiny because I think there are less restrictive alternatives,” he told “This Week” co-anchor Jonathan Karl in April.

On Sunday, Khanna said he still believes that TikTok won’t face a ban, noting how many politicians themselves are on the platform.

“Let’s see where it goes with the Supreme Court,” he said.

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(WASHINGTON) — The House passed the Paris Hilton-championed Stop Institutionalized Child Abuse bill on Wednesday, a sweet victory for the celebrity hotel heiress after the nearly three years she’s spent lobbying politicians in Washington on the issue of reform in the “troubled teen” industry.

The measure that would require more federal oversight into these facilities for troubled minors passed by a vote of 373-33.

All those who voted against the legislation were Republican, most from the far-right faction of the party, including Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Lauren Boebert of Colorado, Andy Biggs and Paul Gosar of Arizona, Byron Donalds of Florida, and Thomas Massie of Kentucky, among others.

The Senate passed the bill a week ago with unanimous support. It now heads to President Joe Biden’s desk for his signature.

“I am so emotional right now. I have never felt prouder in my life,” Hilton told reporters after the vote. “Just to be here today and see our bill pass in Congress has been one of the most incredible moments of my life and I just know that the teenage me would be so proud of the woman that I am today — turning my pain into purpose and being a voice for so many people who don’t have a voice.”

Hilton said she traveled to Washington every six to 10 months starting in October 2021 to push for a child abuse bill. She traveled back to the Hill on Monday and has spent the past two days meeting with representatives in order to get the measure across the finish line. She held a press conference outside the Capitol on Monday evening, urging the House’s passage of the bill.

Hilton was personally in contact with House Majority Leader Steve Scalise regarding movement on the bill this week.

Hilton for years has been an advocate for reform in congregate care facilities and residential treatment programs for “troubled” minors. She’s brazenly described her own traumatizing experience at Provo Canyon School in Utah when she was a teenager.

The legislation — which would ordinarily pass through the House Energy and Commerce committee before it could get called by leaders to the floor — was fast-tracked by bypassing that step, according to a source familiar with committee business.

“When the U.S. Senate came together in a rare show of unity to pass the Stop Institutional Child Abuse Act unanimously on Wednesday December 11th, it was one of the best moments of my life. It was proof that when we listen to survivors and put politics aside, we can create real, meaningful change. But this journey isn’t over. I can’t celebrate until this bill becomes law, and now it’s up to the U.S House of Representatives to finish what the Senate started,” Hilton wrote in an open letter shared to her Instagram page on Monday.

“To Leader Scalise, Speaker Johnson, and every member of the House: I urge you to think about the children who can’t speak for themselves. They’re relying on us—on you—to stand up for their safety and dignity. Passing this bill would be a testament to what we can achieve when we lead with empathy and courage.”

Hilton has traveled to Washington every six to 10 months starting in October 2021, according to her spokesperson, each time asking Congress to reform youth residential treatment facilities.

She’s met individually with members like Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, who thanked Hilton after the bill’s passage last week for her work on the issue, and Republicans like Sens. Chuck Grassley of Iowa and Tim Scott of South Carolina.

Some of her biggest advocates have been the cosponsors of the bill: Sen. Jeff Merkley, D-Ore., and Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, along with Rep. Ro Khanna, D-Calif., Hilton said.

“A lack of oversight and transparency in residential youth programs has allowed for the abuse of children in facilities across the country for far too long,” Cornyn said in a statement after the bill passed.

“I’m proud that the Senate unanimously passed this legislation to ensure the vulnerable children in these facilities are protected, and I want to thank the countless advocates who have bravely shared their stories to help end institutional child abuse.”

Hilton also testified before the House Ways and Means Committee in June, emotionally recounting her experience being at Provo Canyon School as a teen.

“These programs promised healing, growth, and support, but instead did not allow me to speak, move freely, or even look out a window for two years,” she testified in 2023. “I was force-fed medications and sexually abused by the staff. I was violently restrained and dragged down hallways, stripped naked, and thrown into solitary confinement.”

The Provo school in Utah, which is still operating today, released an updated statement in June 2024 saying they couldn’t comment on the operations or student experiences at the school prior to August 2000, when it had changed ownership shortly after Hilton’s stint there. Provo said it did not “condone or promote any form of abuse,” in their statement.

Hilton has gone to the White House to advocate for child welfare, meeting with policy staff in May 2022.

“We have had some prior conversations with the White House about the bill, and we don’t have a reason to believe that they wouldn’t sign it into law,” Hilton’s spokesperson said.

The socialite’s push for congregate-care reform started in 2021, when she came to Washington in support of a similar measure, the Federal Accountability for Congregate Care Act, which was a different bill that was introduced in October 2021 and led by Khanna, Merkley, Rep. Rosa DeLauro, D-Conn., and then-Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif.

Before her visit in 2021, Hilton had opened up about her 11-month experience at Provo Canyon school in her 2020 documentary “This is Paris,” and in a Washington Post op-ed.

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