Democrats Want Investigation Of Puerto Rico Hurricane Response

House Democrats are seeking a 9/11 Commission-style investigation into the federal response to Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico.

Rep. Nydia Velazquez, who represents parts of Brooklyn, Manhattan and Queens, said she will introduce a bill creating the commission next week. 

Velazquez says a Harvard study released last week that puts the death toll of Maria at 4,600 — much higher than the U.S. government's official toll of 64. Democrats say President Donald Trump's administration has not been forthcoming with information about Maria's aftermath. (For more about caveats to that study, read this piece.)

“I expect that, once all the information is brought to light," Velazquez said, "we will find our government’s inadequate response to Maria constitutes a stain on the moral conscience of our nation." 

Rep. Adriano Espaillat, who represents Upper Manhattan and pat of the Bronx, says members of Congress still can’t get accurate information about the number of deaths.

Instead, he said they have to rely on studies published in medical journals, like the Harvard estimate.

“How can we, government, have to rely on private institutions to do our job?” Espaillat asked.

Espaillat and Democrats want the commission to review the entire federal response, including restoring power and providing aid to those rebuilding. One example: Why were Federal Emergency Management Agency aid application only available online when most of the island had no power?

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders has defended the federal response in Puerto Rico.

“The federal response once again was at a historic proportion," Sanders said at Tuesday's White House briefing. "We’re continuing to work with the people of Puerto Rico and do the best we can to provide federal assistance."