WASHINGTON — House speaker Nancy Pelosi leads a bipartisan delegation of US lawmakers to quake-ravaged Haiti Friday to get a first hand look at reconstruction efforts before Congress considers long-term aid.
The delegation was scheduled to meet with President Rene Preval, Prime Minister Jean-Max Bellerive and other Haitian officials during the visit, which comes on the one month anniversary of the devastating 7.0 quake.
More than 200,000 people were killed and 1.2 million were left homeless by the January 12 temblor, which destroyed large parts of the Haitian capital and crippled its institutions.
Planned stops for the lawmakers included visits to aid distribution sites and medical facilities, as well as meetings with officials from the US military, the US Agency for International Development (USAID), the United Nations and humanitarian groups.
"In the spirit of President (Barack) Obama, we go to demonstrate the ongoing American commitment to the Haitian people -- that they will not be forsaken or forgotten," Pelosi said in a statement.
"First and foremost, our delegation goes to pay our respects to the Haitian people who are suffering from the tragedy.
"It is also crucial that the House and Senate -- on a bipartisan basis -- have the opportunity to examine the ongoing reconstruction efforts ahead of the US Congress considering long-term reconstruction assistance for Haiti," she added.
The other members of the delegation include Republican Senator George LeMieux, Democratic senators Tom Harkin -- who chairs the Senate Health Committee -- Bill Nelson, Frank Lautenberg and Amy Klobuchar.
They will be joined by Democratic representatives John Conyers, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee; House Ways and Means Committee chairman Charles Rangel; James Oberstar, who chairs the House Transportation Committee; Sheila Jackson Lee; Earl Blumenauer; and Donna Christensen.
