NYDailyNews

Rudy Says Pols Should Stop Pestering Feds for All $20B

By FRANK LOMBARDI Daily News Staff Writer

Mayor Giuliani scolded politicians yesterday for pressing the White House to speed payment of a promised $20 billion rebuilding fund, saying the city doesn't need the money yet.

The rift is over President Bush's promise to deliver $20 billion to cope with the Sept. 11 attack that demolished the World Trade Center.

After delivering $9.8 billion, the administration wanted to divert the rest of the money to homeland security and military spending while vowing to make good on Bush's promise next year.

Efforts to force the administration to pay all $20 billion now is unnecessary, Giuliani said.

"Right now, we don't need $10 billion. We would put it in T-bills if we got it," he said, referring to Treasury bills.

"The reality is that the White House has granted every request that we've made for actual money that we need," Giuliani said.

The mayor didn't identify whom he was criticizing, but the New York State congressional delegation has lobbied for the cash now, and Mayor-elect Michael Bloomberg went to Washington on Thursday, met with Vice President Cheney and concluded, "We need the money now."

A spokesman for Bloomberg said yesterday that the mayor-elect came away from the Cheney meeting feeling it was less urgent to get the aid immediately.

"The message from the vice president was: Don't worry, the money will be there," the spokesman said, adding that Bloomberg trusts the administration to keep its word.

In remarks likely to bolster his standing with the Republican White House, Giuliani said the federal government has been making requested payments within four or five days.

"They pay us the money faster than we pay people [ourselves]," the mayor said.

But Giuliani warned that the bills will mount.

"We will need $10 billion eventually. We'll need $15 billion. We'll need $20 billion. We may even need $25 billion and $30 billion. But we should ask for the money as we actually need it," he said.

Nevertheless, he said, he is certain the White House will keep its pledge to pay New York all it needs to recover from the World Trade Center disaster.

He said he received fresh assurances of that yesterday in a telephone conversation with Bush chief of staff Andrew Card, and in person from Homeland Security Director Tom Ridge, who visited Ground Zero with the mayor yesterday morning.

Original Publication Date: 11/17/01

-- Anonymous, November 17, 2001