The day before Congress rolled out its latest Hurricane Harvey recovery bill, Ted Cruz was on Twitter arguing with Luke Skywalker. Apparently our state's junior senator and Mark Hamill don't see eye-to-eye on net neutrality.

John Cornyn was on ABC News' "This Week" to dutifully defend President Trump against Robert Mueller's ongoing criminal investigation. The words "hurricane" and "Harvey" do not appear in the transcript.

U.S. Rep. Kevin Brady, a Republican, was arguing about the tax bill with reporters. And U.S. Rep. Al Green, a Democrat, has been trying to impeach the president.

The solidarity and unity once palpable after Harvey has been left to the history books. Now it feels like we're back to politics as usual - the same politics that let Houston endure Hurricane Ike and the Tax Day and Memorial Day floods without the federal response necessary to keep us safe from the next storm.

The only unity you hear out of Houston these days is the kind offered by Jim Blackburn of Rice University's SSPEED Center, Harris County Judge Ed Emmett and recovery czar Marvin Odum at the Chronicle's flood symposium earlier this month - a solid consensus that the feds will fail us yet again.

The emergency disaster aid package offered by the House Appropriations Committee on Monday does little to prove them wrong. Hopes that Congress would write a standalone bill for Texas have been dashed. Gov. Greg Abbott's $61 billion request will go unfulfilled.

No other state has had to fight this hard to get full federal support after a natural disaster. U.S. Rep. Rodney Frelinghuysen, the Republican chairman of the Appropriations Committee, worked to ensure that his home state of New Jersey received everything it needed after Hurricane Sandy. Now Texas has to deal with proclamations from Senate Minority Leader Charles Schumer, D-New York, who said on Monday that our state shouldn't get "a nickle" until the Legislature taps the Rainy Day Fund.

If Sen. Cruz wants to fight someone on Twitter, Schumer would make for a fine target.

Yes, the $81 billion bill is certainly an improvement over the Trump administration's insultingly low-ball $44 billion offer from last month. A bizarre plan by Director of the Office of Management and Budget Mick Mulvaney that would force cities and states to compete for infrastructure grants has effectively been killed. Good.

However, these improvements over Trump's original proposal don't make up for critical deficiencies in the new bill. Houston still lacks access to FEMA Community Disaster Loans, which will help bridge any budget gaps during the rebuilding process.

Also, the bill only includes $12 billion for the Army Corps of Engineers. That's not enough to fully fund an Ike Dike, let alone cover all the other flood control requests across Texas, Florida and Puerto Rico. Our local congressional delegation should not support any version of a bill that doesn't include Houston's three crucial projects - coastal storm surge protection, a third reservoir and bayou infrastructure. Spending billions on recovery without investing in flood control makes about as much sense as rebuilding a home in a floodplain without raising the foundation. We're just going to be back here in a few years, requesting another multi-billion dollar package for flood damage that could have been prevented in the first place.

Congress is rushing to pass this bill because Republicans from Texas, Florida and California have all threatened to oppose the upcoming budget vote ­- and shutdown the government - if disaster relief was not part of the final package. That's the sort of unity Houston needs.

Friday is the deadline to pass a stopgap bill to keep the government open, and our representatives should use this leverage to push for a funding boost. It is time to play a real game of Texas Hold 'Em up in Washington. Don't let Congress call our bluff.

If there was ever a time to hold out for more, this is it.

After the Great Hurricane of 1900, Galveston built the seawall that's protected the island for more than a century.

After the floods of 1929 and 1935, Houston built the reservoirs and flood infrastructure that allowed our city to thrive.

Now, after Hurricane Harvey, we must seize upon the moment history has granted us and build the new reservoirs, bayou projects and coastal spine that will serve our region throughout the 21st century.

The next few days offer a rare opportunity for action. This is our seawall moment.