Cummings Helped Bring Flint Water Crisis to National Stage (2)

Rep. Elijah Cummings, a longtime Maryland Democrat best known for his role as the top congressional watchdog of the Trump administration, was a chief force in propelling the Flint, Mich., water crisis to the national stage. Cummings, chairman of the House Oversight and Reform Committee, died early Oct. 17 from a prolonged illness at 68. He was a leading figure in the impeachment inquiry into President Donald Trump. Cummings was particularly sensitive to problems that caused harm to children, Rep. Brenda Lawrence (D-Mich.), a member of the Oversight Committee whose Detroit-area district isn’t far from Flint, told Bloomberg Environment. Lawrence said Cummings wanted to look into the problem of lead poisoning in the country. “He would tell me, ‘This isn’t over yet, Brenda, we’ve got to keep fighting for this, because this should not be happening in our America,’” she said.