| Topic: |
Politics > Politics-USA |
| User: |
"GW Chimpzilla" |
| Date: |
04 Sep 2005 02:27:24 PM |
| Object: |
Bush Now Dealing With Awesome Crises |
It's almost awe-inspiring to see the level of energy and coordination the Bush
White House can bring to bear in a genuine crisis. Not hurricane Katrina, of
course, but the political crisis they now find rising around them.
As we noted yesterday, the storyline and the outlines of the attack are now
clear: pin the blame for the debacle on state and local authorities.
So, let's get all the facts out on the table now. And let's not be afraid to let
them all fall where they may. There's no need to make saints of Gov. Blanco or
Mayor Nagin. In such a storm of error as this, it would not surprise me if they
made a number of them too. But the reason you have a federal government and
particularly a FEMA in cases like this is that it is in the nature of local and
state authorities to be at least partly overwhelmed in disasters of this
magnitude. Read what Ed Kilgore wrote a couple days ago at TPMCafe ...
Anyone who's been involved in a disaster response episode will tell you the
first few days are characterized by absolute chaos. Basic logistics are fouled
up; communications systems are paralyzed; a thousand urgent needs must be
triaged; a vast welter of well-meaning but tunnel-visioned federal, state and
local agencies, plus private charitable organizations and volunteers, rush in;
local elected officials are forced in front of cameras to inform and reassure
the affected population. Somebody has to be in charge of the chaos, and that's
FEMA's job.
This is just one of the many reasons why the White House's main excuse -- that
the locals didn't tell us what to do -- is such a grim joke.
But let me, just for starters, focus in on one specific case. Administration
officials gave a series of blind quotes for an article that appeared in today's
Washington Post.
One passage reads as follows ...
Louisiana did not reach out to a multi-state mutual aid compact for assistance
until Wednesday, three state and federal officials said. As of Saturday, Blanco
still had not declared a state of emergency, the senior Bush official said.
I don't have the details yet on the first point about the multi-state mutual aid
compact. The state authorities seem to be saying that there was little point in
making the request since the nearby states were also hit by Katrina. Indeed,
this article says that Blanco accepted an offer of National Guard troops from
New Mexico on Sunday, but that the paperwork didn't arrive from Washington
until Thursday.
But let's focus in on the second point. Had Blanco still not declared a state of
emergency as late as yesterday?
On the state of Louisiana website you can find this letter Gov. Blanco sent to
President Bush on August 28th, that was last Sunday, just on the eve of the
hurricane's landfall. (Here's the PDF and here is a text transcription.)
Basically the letter is a laundry list of requests for aid and assistance from
the federal government, invoking various laws, and so forth.
Some of the key passages include ...
Under the provisions of [the relevant federal law], I request that you declare
an emergency for the State of Louisiana due to Hurricane Katrina for the time
period beginning August 26, 2005, and continuing ... In response to the
situation I have taken appropriate action under State law and directed the
execution of the State Emergency Plan on August 26, 2005 in accordance with
Section 501 (a) of the Stafford Act. A State of Emergency has been issued for
the State in order to support the evacuations of the coastal areas in
accordance with our State Evacuation Plan ... Pursuant to 44 CFR § 206.35, I
have determined that this incident is of such severity and magnitude that
effective response is beyond the capabilities of the State and affected local
governments, and that supplementary Federal assistance is necessary to save
lives, protect property, public health, and safety, or to lessen or avert the
threat of a disaster ...
The referenced state declaration of emergency was apparently declared on August
26th, that is, the Friday before landfall.
There's also this Statement on Federal Emergency Assistance for Louisiana, which
appears on the White House website dated August 27th, which begins: "The
President today declared an emergency exists in the State of Louisiana and
ordered Federal aid to supplement state and local response efforts in the
parishes located in the path of Hurricane Katrina beginning on August 26, 2005,
and continuing."
Key excerpts include ...
The President's action authorizes the Department of Homeland Security, Federal
Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), to coordinate all disaster relief efforts
which have the purpose of alleviating the hardship and suffering caused by the
emergency on the local population, and to provide appropriate assistance for
required emergency measures, authorized under Title V of the Stafford Act, to
save lives, protect property and public health and safety, or to lessen or
avert the threat of a catastrophe ... Specifically, FEMA is authorized to
identify, mobilize, and provide at its discretion, equipment and resources
necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency.
Now, it seems to me there are three points that make sense to raise with all
this data.
The first is the importance of keeping an eye on the big picture and that is the
fact that this whole conversation we're having now is not about substance, but
procedural niceties, excuses which is it is beyond shameful for an American
president to invoke in such a circumstance. We don't live in the 19th century.
All you really needed was a subscription to basic cable to know almost all of
the relevant details (at least relevant to know what sort of assistance was
needed) about what was happening late last week. The president and his advisors
want to duck responsibility by claiming, in so many words, that the Louisiana
authorities didn't fill out the right forms. So what they're trying to pull is
something like a DMV nightmare on steroids.
Second, as long as the White House wants to play this game, there are various
invocations of federal statutes in this proclamations. And we'd need a lawyer
with relevant experience to pick apart whether the right sections and powers
were invoked.
Third -- and this is key -- even on its own terms, the White House's claims seem
false on their face. The plain English of this documents shows that states of
emergency had been declared on both the state and federal level before the
hurricane hit and that at the state's request the president had given FEMA
plenary powers to "identify, mobilize, and provide at its discretion, equipment
and resources necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency."
-- Josh Marshall
<http://www.talkingpointsmemo.com/archives/week_2005_09_04.php#006410>
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| User: "the good Doctor" |
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| Title: Re: Bush Now Dealing With Awesome Crises |
04 Sep 2005 02:55:29 PM |
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"GW Chimpzilla" <gw@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:wUHSe.85987$084.59304@attbi_s22...
It's almost awe-inspiring to see the level of energy and coordination the
Bush
White House can bring to bear in a genuine crisis. Not hurricane Katrina,
of
course, but the political crisis they now find rising around them.
As we noted yesterday, the storyline and the outlines of the attack are
now
clear: pin the blame for the debacle on state and local authorities.
The blame lays squarely on the backs of those lazy, good for nothing bums
who lay around thinking about what stores to loot, instead of volunteering
their time fixing those levies. FEMA money is for partying, not preventing
disasters or relief. Get your story straight.
.
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| User: "GW Chimpzilla" |
|
| Title: Re: Bush Now Dealing With Awesome Crises |
04 Sep 2005 03:25:10 PM |
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the good Doctor wrote:
"GW Chimpzilla" <gw@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:wUHSe.85987$084.59304@attbi_s22...
It's almost awe-inspiring to see the level of energy and coordination the
Bush
White House can bring to bear in a genuine crisis. Not hurricane Katrina,
of
course, but the political crisis they now find rising around them.
As we noted yesterday, the storyline and the outlines of the attack are
now
clear: pin the blame for the debacle on state and local authorities.
The blame lays squarely on the backs of those lazy, good for nothing bums
who lay around thinking about what stores to loot, instead of volunteering
their time fixing those levies. FEMA money is for partying, not preventing
disasters or relief. Get your story straight.
In other words, principled conservatives.
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