District Update | April 27, 2015
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U.S. Congressman French Hill
Dear Friends,
One year ago today, the Arkansas towns of Mayflower and Vilonia were hit by an EF4 tornado with reported winds approaching 200mph and a swath of destruction that stretched over 40 miles long.

Despite the damage and the tragic loss of life, the people of these towns never lost their spirit and remain a great inspiration to many as they continue to rebuild their community.

When the tornado hit, neighborhoods in Mayflower were still recovering from and rebuilding after the oil spill from the Pegasus Pipeline just one year earlier, and residents of Vilonia still had the horror of a 2011 twister fresh in their minds.

With fatalities reaching 16, and over 400 homes destroyed, the National Weather Service stated that this was the single deadliest tornado to hit the state of Arkansas since 1968.

The tragic events only momentarily stunned the people of these towns, as the pain and anguish was almost immediately met with the type of resiliency that very few can possess.

Their courage, in addition to the willingness of  neighbors to help neighbors, and the financial and volunteer support from across the country that streamed into the ravaged towns were vital to the rebuilding  process, and within one month, marked improvement was seen.

Just last week, 12 new homes built by Faulkner County’s Habitat for Humanity were dedicated, with 25 expected to be finished by July, and a second phase began in September.

As these brave communities continue to recover and rebuild, I applaud them and offer my assistance for their resilience and dedication to their neighbors, economy, and community.

Below are the names of those lost in the tornado:

Paula Blakemore, 55, El Paso
Mark Bradley, 51, Mayflower
Jayme Collins, 50, Vilonia
Helen Greer, 72, Mayflower
Jeffery Hunter, 22, Vilonia
Dennis Lavergne, 52, Vilonia
Glenna Lavergne, 53, Vilonia
David Mallory, 57, Vilonia
Robert Oliver, 82, Mayflower
Cameron Smith, 8, Vilonia,
Tyler Smith, 7, Vilonia
Rebekah Tittle, 14, Paron
Robert Tittle, 48, Paron
Tori Tittle, 20, Paron
Daniel Wasson, 31, Vilonia

As always, but especially today, they are in my thoughts and prayers.

Sincerely,


Representative French Hill
 


Dangerous Financial Windfall for Iran

This week, the House Financial Services Committee held its first the Task Force to Investigate Terrorism Financing hearing. At the hearing, Dr. Jonathan Schanzer, Vice President for Research at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, testified on the possibility of the current framework for the Iranian Nuclear Deal leading to a major "windfall" for the terror groups sponsored by the Iranians.

The Democratic Ranking Member on the task force, Rep Steven Lynch of Massachusetts,  agreed with this assessment, telling the Boston Herald:
"The worry is that as sanctions go down, the money is going to go out to different networks"

Following the hearing, Rep. Hill stated: "Since the framework for the Iranian nuclear deal was announced, many in Congress have remained wary about the President’s willingness to trust an adversarial power who is the largest state sponsor of terrorism in the world. What I learned during today’s testimony from Dr. Jonathan Schanzer only enhances my skepticism towards the deal and the level of trust we should place in Iranian leadership. If his statement is true, and lifting economic sanctions on Iran could lead to an economic jackpot for sworn enemies of the United States, then there is no way Congress can justify supporting the deal. I will continue to work with my colleagues on the Task Force to Investigate Terrorism Financing to keep the rest of the Congress mindful of Iran’s financial ties to some of the world’s most notorious terrorist organizations."
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