Cantor: Funds for tornado victims will be offset

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor on Sunday said that the government would "find the money" for emergency assistance to disaster-struck regions like Joplin, Mo., but that any aid would be offset by cuts to the federal budget.

Joplin is the latest American city to face devastation at the hands of a powerful tornado in what has been the deadliest tornado season on record since 1950. As of Sunday, the Joplin death toll was at 139, but is expected to go higher as the search continues for more than 100 people still missing.

In an appearance on "Face the Nation," Cantor (R-Va.) emphasized that, in dealing with the devastation, "there is an appropriate federal role" - but that, like any family, the government doesn't have unlimited resources.

"Congress will find the money," Cantor told CBS News senior correspondent Harry Smith. "And it will be offset."

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"I know that America is just stunned by the scope of devastation and loss and the horrific tragedy that the people of Joplin and other places across the country really are experiencing this tornado season," Cantor said.

But, he added, comparing the federal government to a family on a tight budget, the government would have to make cuts somewhere else to compensate for the expenditures.

"When a family is struck with tragedy - like the family of Joplin ... let's say if they had $10,000 set aside to do something else with, to buy a new car ... and then they were struck with a sick member of the family or something, and needed to take that money to apply it to that, that's what they would do, because families don't have unlimited money.

"Neither does the federal government" have endless resources, he continued.

Earlier on "Face the Nation," Missouri governor Jay Nixon emphasized the depth of the destruction in Joplin - and noted that rebuilding would not be easy.

"It has been hard to put into context how deep this destruction is," Nixon told Smith. "I think today's memorial service - when people have a moment to pause for an hour and pray together and think about this - they'll begin to see the pictures of the hundreds of friends who are gone, the schools that are gone, the fact that it's going to be a long, long pullback for the people of Joplin.

"We have to have a commitment to rebuild," he added. "It will take a long time. I mean, there's going to be a tremendous amount of potential frustration, a tremendous amount of pain and anguish through this process."

Nixon noted that the state government had already put aside $25 million in funds to begin that process - and said that the state would "make our case" to the Obama administration "to make sure we get the dollars that other regions have gotten."

"I'm confident we'll find the resources to get this done," he said. "Whatever method it takes. I mean, we've had an unbelievable outpouring of private donations already and I have a great deal of experience with our federal partners. I fully expect that we will have the resources to rebuild here."

Still, he said, the coming days would not be easy.

"I feel resolve here," said Nixon. "But there's going to be some sad moments here over the next few days."

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Joplin tornado aftermath

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[noloyalisti]

by tsigili

You are completely and totally wrong about who pays taxes. EVERYONE pays sales taxes and payroll taxes. Homeowners pay property taxes and most people pay taxes on utility bills and autos. The giant filthy rich corporations are who don't pay taxes. And the rich who only pay capitals gains taxes, less than half what I pay.

Where did you pull 45% from, Fox Propaganda Channel the Republicon Corporation front group? Or from where the sun don't shine?

[noloyalisti]

The Republicons only want to cut the taxes on the very rich, not the other 99%. That is the problem with their "plan" to make us all worker slaves. I myself am getting more and more upset at this whole system of enriching a few at my expense.

I am seriously getting to the end of my rope with these giant corporations running their predatory capitalism system that I have to pay for.

[tsigili]

If the GOP would stop cutting their own taxes, as well as half the population of the country, we might not be in this situation, in the first place.

Of course, with Obama the Squanderer, in the WH, you do have to question, how much money he could have run through, before anyone stopped him, if it was there to spend!

Truth is......only 45% of households pay taxes. That simply says, the entire system is broken. Almost NO ONE should pay NO taxes! Everyone should be paying at least, a minimum amount of income taxes, if they have ANY income.

In truth, 90% of all households, should be paying taxes, of some amount. It is no wonder that the country is broke.

Where was Cantor and the GOP, when Bush was waging 2 wars, and cutting taxes?????? That should have been a no-brainer.......you can't do that!

[jeanneyess]

Dear Tsigili,

Love it "If the GOP would stop cutting their own taxes," Oh, how I have longed to hear it !!! Our entire economy would turn from the red to the black. When we FINALLY collect all the back taxes, fines, fees and compound interest from those offshore tax evasion felony (FELONY) accounts. You think we could pay off the deficit with money for health care AND Social Security and keep it secure if we just stopped giving them that 70%!!! tax cut AND put a halt to their FELONY tax evasion ???with that big floating bubble of more oil bailouts to these incredibly profitable oil companies even before they have lost a penny, oh the GOP just has such a big heart, while we pay for these subsidies in cash, lost jobs, lost homes, lost second cars, because they can't afford it don't need it for that job they lost and the stores they can't afford to go to, and the Republican suggestion to force all people receiving entitlement money to get their clothing only at thrift shops so the "beautiful girls in their rich and wealthy cliques" from middle school up can torment them the nouveau poor about being "losers from the white trash ghetto who probably even get their panties from the losers stores" oh, you probably don't remember the new immigrant girl who was harrassed and maligned even to her home and onto facebook she hanged herself, but don't teach their kids any values like mercy, charity, kindness, absolutely NO ETHICS, and no respect for anyone that isn't rich, to be like them. Well Tsigili, obviously you know it already but they don't so for those folks out there, just remember, God has eyes, and the meek inherit the earth.

[jimbom121]

Did Vriginia's request for disaster aid also have to be off-set?

http://www2.timesdispatch.com/news/2011/may/28/tdmet04-cantor-says-he-backs-mcdonnells-push-for-d-ar-1070177/

[noloyalisti]

Are all Republicons scum sucking pigs? Or just the ones that have been bought into Congress by the corporate masters?

[Earl_Gray]

Mr. Cantor compares the running of the Federal government to a family that has to make "hard choices" to accomodate an unexpected financial obligation.

The government is not a "family". It is an enterprise whose business is to provide the citizens of the United States with a wide variety of services, from national defense to building and maintaining roads to educating our young and providing health care coverage to our elderly and poor. In this way, they arre no different than, say, General Electric, which also has numerous "product lines" in its offering.

To say that needing to "offset" the cost ofmeeting the disaster needs of folks whose homes and property were swept away by floods or tornados is like G.E. saying that they need to eliminate some of the safety features on their jet engines to offset losses in their GE Capital Division. It's complete nonsense.

The role that the government plays in disaster relief is that of an umbrella insurance policy - after the personal policies and state disaster fund "policies" have ben ehausted. Every American benefits from having this "policy" in place. If the budget for disaster management is not adequate to reliably meet the needs of all "citizen subscribers", the "premium" needs to go up, just as it does in the business world. Just as I cannot choose to "opt out" of auto insurance if I want to drive my car in New York (or most places), we, as a people, cannot "opt out" of our share of the additional "premium" necessary to cover these extraordinary costs.

To imagine it is OK to simply scrimp on some other service I "buy" from Uncle Sam is not acceptable.

[RobAla]

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor on Sunday said that the government would "find the money" for emergency assistance to disaster-struck regions like Joplin, Mo., but that any aid would be offset by cuts to the federal budget.

That is exactly what has to be done. We are borrowing $1.5 trillion per year, and we have no additional money. Cantor is doing the right thing. He is helping the victims, and will make cuts in other areas to pay for it. Thank you.

[jimbom121]

fine...let each tax payer pay $5 for a natural disaster fund. Or we can cut the oil or farm subsidies to pay for it.

[Kishiko]

So we have endless amounts of money to bailout banks who go bankrupt because of their own corruption and bad business strategy, and there is no limit to how much we spend on war's in the middle east invading countries that supposedly had weapons of mass destruction, but actually didn't have any (and these countries never actually attacked us) but they don't know how to find money to help a town of taxpaying americans who were devastated and lost their homes through no fault of their own? He compared it to a family being on a tight budget. NOW THEY WANT TO BE CAREFUL WITH THE BUDGET?
And we pay millions of dollars to a country that was harboring Osama Bin Laden? We give oil companies tax breaks when they are making BILLIONS and BILLIONS in profits every year?
I LOVE IT! THIS IS HILARIOUS! I HOPE THEY KEEP IT UP! I don't care anymore! I don't care anymore at all.

[doctor_know]

So Cantor is saying the GOP is too cheap to pay out emergency relief funds.... Pathetic!

[RobAla]

Where is the additional money coming from? We are borrowing $1.5 trillion per year, like it is. Cantor is doing the right thing. That is exactly what has to be done. We are borrowing $1.5 trillion per year, and we have no additional money. Cantor is doing the right thing. He is helping the victims, and will make cuts in other areas to pay for it.

[jimbom121]

Yes...that is what they are saying.

[doctor_know]

Offset these funds, and others, by letting the Bush tax cuts expire....