Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (N.Y.) and Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Secretary Scott Turner got into a heated discussion on Thursday, with the New York Democrat raising her voice at Turner over his repeated references to the Biden administration.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
During a hearing of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, Turner noted that his department reported that in 2024, more than 770,000 people were homeless at one time \u2014 the highest recorded mark in U.S. history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThis is with record funding,\u201d Turner noted. \u201cSo we have record funding, but yet we have an increase in street homelessness.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gillibrand cut him off and asked, \u201cSo what is your record? You had this job for well over a year. I just want to know, did you get the number down?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She then asked Turner how many homeless people were in the department\u2019s latest report, questioning whether it was still around 700,000 or if it had increased.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cSo I get you want to do things differently,\u201d Gillibrand said. \u201cAnd this committee will support you as long as the goals are good, but where\u2019s the result?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The New York Democrat then slammed Turner for the delayed release of the latest homeless report from HUD.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cYou\u2019re in charge, you have a vision,\u201d she told Turner. \u201cLet\u2019s see it. Let\u2019s see the results.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Turner, a former NFL player and Republican state representative from Texas, replied, \u201cI thank God that I\u2019m in charge so we can do stuff differently. Because the plays that were ran before I got here, they failed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI have been here a little bit over a year,\u201d he continued. \u201cBut you all had during the Biden administration, four years.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gillibrand then cut him off again and shouted, \u201cStop talking about Biden, talk about your record.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She continued, \u201cThis is so inaccurate, unhelpful, and doesn\u2019t let this committee do our job.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As for why HUD has not released its latest report, Turner cited the 43-day government shutdown in the fall.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThe point-in-time report would be out right now if we did not have a government shutdown. Irregardless of all of that, during the Biden administration, record funding,\u201d Turner said, before Gillibrand again cut him off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOh my God! If you talk about \u2014 it\u2019s like two children saying, \u2018I didn\u2019t do it. My brother did it.\u2019 Stop with the excuses,\u201d she stated. \u201cJust explain your record.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
She later asked Turner, \u201cDo you know what it\u2019s like to be a homeless little girl who has to have a Girl Scout troop just for other homeless little girls? Because that\u2019s all they have. That\u2019s the only consistency they have in their life.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI need to know if your stuff is working,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In its 2024 point-in-time report, HUD noted that \u201cseveral factors likely contributed\u201d to the record high number of homeless people in the country.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cOur worsening national affordable housing crisis, rising inflation, stagnating wages among middle- and lower-income households, and the persisting effects of systemic racism have stretched homelessness services systems to their limits,\u201d the 117-page report stated.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Since taking over the department in February of last year, Turner has criticized the \u201cHousing First\u201d policy at HUD under the Biden administration \u2014 which prioritized providing housing to homeless individuals and then connecting them to voluntary services.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
On Thursday, Turner again reiterated that point.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cI\u2019m not talking to you about what I\u2019ve heard,\u201d he told Gillibrand. \u201cI\u2019m talking to you about what I know. And what I do know: The Housing First model failed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n