Over the past few days, both Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders have expressed outrage over the lack of response to the ongoing lead poisoning crisis in Flint, Michigan.
In her closing statements during the Democratic debate last night (in which there was no mention of the water crisis) Clinton said that “Every single American should be outraged about the crisis.”
The former Secretary of State also called out Michigan governor, Rick Snyder: “The governor of that state acted as though he didn’t really care. He had requests for help that he basically stonewalled.”
You can see her full remarks here:
A few days before the debate Bernie Sanders called for the Governor Snyder’s resignation in the wake of the crisis:
“There are no excuses. The governor long ago knew about the lead in Flint’s water. He did nothing. As a result, hundreds of children were poisoned. Thousands may have been exposed to potential brain damage from lead. Gov. Snyder should resign.”
Sanders Statement: Michigan Governor Must Resign over Flint Lead-Poisoning Crisis pic.twitter.com/6hDPRg5iWw
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) January 16, 2016
The water crisis in Flint is an ongoing crisis of the tap water being contaminated with lead. The contamination is a result of the city changing their water supply source. When the switch happened water from Flint River caused lead from aging pipes to leak into the water supply. Children especially have been affected by the lead, and Flint has seen a huge spike in Legionnaires’ disease, a respiratory disease caused by bacteria, which could also be linked to the water crisis.
In December Governor Snyder finally declared a state of emergency, after months of complaints from residents and several class action lawsuits. The governor has since called in the National Guard to help clean the city’s water supply and distribute drinkable water.
Meanwhile, Republican candidates have been silent on the issue, while Republicans in the House of Representatives have attempted to block the new “Clean Water Rule” which would allow federal authority over small waterways.
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