Reid retracts statement that Hurricane Sandy worse than Katrina

Reid, D-Nev., said he “simply misspoke” while comparing the victims of Katrina, which struck Mississippi and Louisiana in 2005, and Sandy, which battered the East Coast in October.

The Senate majority leader was complaining Friday that House Republicans were dragging their feet on a $60 billion bill for Sandy recovery.

“When we had that devastation from Katrina, we were there within days taking care of Mississippi, Alabama and especially Louisiana – within days,” Reid said. “We are now past two months with the people of New York and New Jersey.

“The people of New Orleans and that area, they were hurt but nothing in comparison to what happened to the people in New York and New Jersey.”

According to a New York Times comparison in November, Katrina caused 1,833 deaths and $145 billion in damage while Sandy has caused more than $80 billion in damages and was tied to 200 deaths in seven countries, including 132 on the U.S. mainland.

Katrina damaged or destroyed 1.2 million housing units while Sandy leveled 380,000 homes in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut.

Sandy left 8.51 million homes in 16 states without power, while Katrina knocked out power in about 3 million homes in at least eight states.

Reid’s comments struck a nerve among some in the gulf region.

“Sadly, Harry Reid has again revealed himself to be an idiot, this time gravely insulting Gulf Coast residents,” Louisiana Republican Sen. David Vitter said Monday on Twitter. “Katrina and Sandy caused real human misery. By most measures, Katrina was the worst natural disaster in history.”

It was the second time in recent days that Reid has been on the receiving end of rather direct criticism. During negotiations on the “fiscal cliff” tax and spending bill late last month, House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, told Reid to “go f— yourself.”

“Harry Reid’s ignorant and insensitive statement is an insult to both the victims of Hurricane Katrina as well as those victims of Hurricane Sandy,” said Rep. Steve Scalise, R-La. “One of the things that disgusts people about politics is when Washington politicians try to exploit disasters to divide Americans and promote their personal agendas.”

Reid was not the only politician to compare the storms. In November, New York Gov. Andew Cuomo said Hurricane Sandy was “more impactful” than Hurricane Katrina.

In his correction Monday, Reid said he has “been an advocate for disaster victims in the face of Republican foot-dragging from Hurricane Katrina to Hurricane Sandy, from fires in the West to tornadoes in the Midwest.”