California Ag TODAY

A crowd of unhappy West Side Farmers and other agricultural interests attending the Congressional water forum in Fresno on Monday, Jan. 18.

From Russ Waymire, An agriculultural professional, whom I trust.

These are current references of events at a Water Meeting in Los Banos illustrating how Jim Costa is misrepresenting the 20th Congressional District in the Central Valley “The Congress Created Dust Bowl”…

We citizens of this great Country expect our elected Congressional Representatives to maintain Integrity and Honesty in stating their voting records to us in public Forums. This is a firsthand eye witness report from a recent water meeting I attended in Los Banos on Thursday January 14, 2010, were Congressman Jim Costa failed to uphold the Good Faith, Honesty and Integrity entrusted to Congressional Representatives on behalf of those who elect them..

I encourage you to read the account of the meeting and the deliberate misrepresentations Congressman Jim Costa’s made pertaining to his voting record in Washington D.C.

After reading this you will also see a news flash at the end of this report about Congressman Costa not attending the Congressional Water Forum in Fresno today but instead he attended a Congressional Water meeting held at Metropolitan Water Districts Office in Los Angeles…….

January 14, 2009 Los Banos Water Meeting fact sheet

Congressman Costa at the Los Banos Water meeting on January 14, 2010 was questioned why he and Dennis Cardoza did not support Congressman Devin Nunes 7 legislative attempts to turn the pumps on and keep them on. Costa stepped to the microphone and told a crowd of farmers, Federal and State Agency personnel, news reporters and others in attendance that it’s not true that he did not support Nunes and that he supported Congressman Nunes 7 legislative attempts 6 out of 7 times. Costa repeated this statement numerous times.

This statement was totally inaccurate and especially outrageous considering that Costa would make such a false claim in a front of farmers who have already lost their farms and others who are suffering financial ruin due to Costa’s lack of leadership to solve the water crisis.

The facts are Costa had 7 opportunities to vote for and/or support Nunes attempts to turn the water pumps on and keep them on. Costa opposed Congressman Nunes efforts 5 times out of 7 attepts.

In fact it even gets worse, COSTA outright VOTED FOUR TIMES out of 7 legislative attempts to BLOCK Congressman Nunes “Turn the Pumps On” legislation from even coming up for a vote…

However, if Congressman Costa believes that he supported Congressman Nunes 6 out of 7 times, I would encourage him to release the details of those votes.

Here is a list of the seven Legislative opportunities to Turn the Pumps On in 2009….

1. June 18, 2009: Rep. Nunes offered an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2010 Commerce, Justice, and State Appropriations Bill which funds the National Marine Fisheries Service and who issued the Killer Whale biological opinion. The amendment would have defunded the implementation of the opinion. Costa and Cardoza voted YES. The amendment was defeated by the Democrat majority in the House 208-218 (Roll Call Vote #366). Rep. Costa and Cardoza were able to get 37 Democrats to support them on this vote.

2. June 25, 2009: Rep. Nunes offered an amendment to the Fiscal Year 2010 Interior Appropriation Bill which provides funding to the Department of Interior who has the authority over the Delta pumps. The amendment would have defunded the biological opinions that are keeping the pumps off. The Amendment was defeated in Rules Committee (Cardoza is a member of the Committee). Costa and Cardoza voted in favor of the Rule on the floor that blocked the Nunes Amendment from being considered;

3. July 8, 2009: Rep. Ken Calvert (R-CA) offered an amendment during the Appropriations Committee Mark-up of the Fiscal Year 2010 Energy and Water Appropriations Bill. The amendment would have turned on the pumps. Costa and Cardoza are not on the Committee and couldn’t vote. But, neither of them lobbied the committee members to support the amendment;

4. July 15, 2009: Rep. Nunes offered three amendments to the Fiscal Year 2010 Energy and Water Appropriations Bill. All amendments would have defunded the biological opinions and turned on the pumps. The Amendments were defeated in Rules Committee (Cardoza is a member of the Committee). Costa and Cardoza voted in favor of the Rule on the floor that blocked the Nunes Amendments from being considered;

5. July 23, 2009: Rep. Nunes offered a resolution on the House floor (Privileged Resolution) that would have immediately brought up the Turn on the Pumps Act. Costa and Cardoza voted to defeat the resolution. On an interesting note, three Democrats supported Congressman Nunes on this vote – none from California. If three non-California Democrats can support turning on the pumps, why can’t Costa and Cardoza?

6. (Editor's note: Costa's office called and denied assertion #6. They provided me with evidence and thus I, with a goal of being accurate, deleted this part of the Waymire's research.)

7. December 2, 2009: Rep. Nunes filed a Discharge Petition for H.R. 3105, the Turn on the Pumps Act. Costa has signed the discharge petition. Unfortunately, Congressman Cardoza refuses to sign the petition. I guess Cardoza is more afraid of Speaker Pelosi than his own voting constituents in his Congressional district being damaged by the water crisis.