Jeff Bingaman United States Senator from New Mexico

WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman and several of his Senate colleagues offered their strong support for U.S. efforts to provide assistance in the aftermath of devastating earthquake in Haiti.

In a letter to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Bingaman and several other Senators, said they support immediate and aggressive action by the U.S. government.  The letter follows:

Dear Secretary Clinton,

We write to express our deep concern over the tragic loss of life and devastating destruction in the aftermath of Tuesday's earthquake in Haiti, and to express our support for your efforts to respond quickly and aggressively to this crisis.  Our thoughts and prayers are with the people of Haiti and the thousands of Americans who have friends and family affected by this disaster.

We appreciate the strong public statement made today by the President as well as the efforts that you and the State Department have already taken.  An aggressive and coordinated international effort—with active leadership from the United States—is essential in order to save lives and prevent further devastation.

This tragedy presents enormous challenges, not only to the people of Haiti, but also to the international community's efforts and ability to respond.  We want to assure you that we stand ready to assist you, Administrator Shah, and the administration in both the immediate response to the crisis and to the longer term plan for recovery.

Please do not hesitate to contact us or our staff if we can be of any assistance.

The letter was signed by Bingaman, Dodd, (D-CT), Kerry (D-ma), Lugar (R-IN) Leahy (D-VT), Harkin (D-IA), Durbin (D-IL), Menendez (D-NJ), Corker (R-TN), and Barrasso (R-WY).