Obama announces $100 million for Haiti

[sabra]

Source: MSNBC

From NBC's Athena Jones
WASHINGTON -- Calling Haiti a top priority that would involve every element of America's national capacity, the president on Thursday announced $100 million in aid to help with relief efforts in the devastated country.

The money is only an initial investment, one the president said would grow over the coming year as the United States helps with long term aid efforts in one of the poorest countries in the Western hemisphere, a place still struggling to recover after a spate of hurricanes two years ago.

Flanked by Vice President Joe Biden and members of his national security team, including Defense Secretary Robert Gates, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice, Joint Chiefs Chairman Mike Mullen and USAID Administrator Dr. Rajiv Shah, President Obama said the United States stood in solidarity with Haiti and told the people of Haiti that they would not be forgotten or forsaken.

"This is one of those moments that calls out for American leadership," he said.

Earlier this morning, Obama met in the Oval Office with several of his lead military and civilian national security team for an update on the situation in Haiti.

Read more: http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2010/01/14/2173734.aspx

[90-percent]

1. Wow!

See, the USA is generous and compassionate! That princely amount is the equivalent of the bonuses earned by at least two or three AIG execs COMBINED!

America's generosity knows no bounds.

It's heartwarming to know my tax dollars are going to deserving people in both cases.

-90% Jimmy

:sarcasm:

[WriteDown]

2. How much have Cuba, Venezuela, China pledged?

Also, this is the initial pledge so don't get too snarky yet.

[Bacchus39]

3. yep, the US will step up. I wonder if France will

the other countries you mentioned, I doubt too much.

[Jefferson23]

5. On Democracy Now this morning, Cuba already had 400

trained people on the ground in Haiti as of last night.


“The Sound of Screaming Is Constant”–Haiti Devastated by Massive Earthquake, Desperate Search for Survivors Continues
The death toll rises as Haiti is crushed by a massive 7.0-magnitude earthquake. Bodies lie in the streets as people continue to cry out from underneath the rubble. Little aid has come in as the situation becomes increasingly desperate. The number of dead is almost certainly in the tens of thousands but could be 100,000 or more. We go to Port-au-Prince to get a report from a young American father who is helping to care for the injured in the hotel where he was staying when the quake struck.

Report from Haiti: Desperate Call for Aid with Rescue Equipment, Medicine, Food & Water in Short Supply
Much of the Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince has been leveled by Tuesday’s earthquake, leaving as many as 100,000 people dead and tens of thousands of people homeless. As of Thursday morning, little aid has arrived in Haiti. Planeloads of rescuers and relief supplies are said to be on the way from the US, EU, Canada, Russia and Latin American nations. We go to Port-au-Prince to speak with independent journalist Ansel Herz.

US Policy in Haiti Over Decades “Lays the Foundation for Why Impact of Natural Disaster Is So Severe”
We discuss the situation in Haiti following Tuesday’s massive earthquake, as well as the history of Haiti, with two guests who have spent a lot of time there: Bill Quigley, the legal director at the Center for Constitutional Rights, and Brian Concannon, director of the Institute for Justice & Democracy in Haiti.

Naomi Klein Issues Haiti Disaster Capitalism Alert: Stop Them Before They Shock Again
Journalist and author Naomi Klein spoke in New York last night and addressed the crisis in Haiti: “We have to be absolutely clear that this tragedy—which is part natural, part unnatural—must, under no circumstances, be used to, one, further indebt Haiti and, two, to push through unpopular corporatist policies in the interest of our corporations. This is not conspiracy theory they have done it again and again.”

http://www.democracynow.org/

[WriteDown]

6. And how many 100Million?

Not sure 400 people is going to do it. I'd like to see a backup source for that too.

[sabrina 1]

10. I'm not sure why you're making this a contest

but since you are. Both Venezuela and Cuba have been helping Haiti for years, especially since the US coup of their beloved president Aristedes after which the country became a humanitarian nightmare as the thuggish, puppet government installed by the US although rejected by all of the S.A and Caribean nations, systematically murdered supporters of democracy there.

President Bill Clinton praised both Cuba and Venezuela for their work for the people of Haiti. Ven. has given tens of millions of dollars to the country and sent in doctors and other aid, saving the lives of many Haitians. Cuba has helped train hundreds of Haitian doctors in a country where there was once only a few.

Iow, we owe that country every dime we send them for not prosecuting the criminal Bush administration. Haiti was just one more crime committed by those criminals.

Nice of you to appear at this stage in the recent history of Haiti, but since the 2004 coup, it was countries like Cuba and Venezuela who were there, on the ground, supplying money and food and healthcare to a nation that no one else seemed to care about.

[WriteDown]

11. Aristide? Seriously?

Conyers pointed out that he was "Bush" of Haiti:

"Unfortunately, there were irregularities that occurred in the election and there is a post-election problem of the vote count that is threatening to undo the democratic work of the citizens of Haïti. Without doubt there were irregularities that occurred in the election which have been conceded by the CEP."

Let's not also forget that Aristide also blamed France.

You may want to look at all the aid that the US has given to Haiti over the years.

[sabrina 1]

20. And Maxin Waters, Dodd and other members of Congress

disagree with him. He was ousted under Bush 1. Clinton re-instated him. Bush 11 had him removed again.

From the time he was kidnapped and removed, and the brutal puppet government installed, the people of Haiti have continued to demand his return. Many have been murdered.

Aristedes did not cooperate with the Glogalists and wanted to make his country independent of eg, the World Bank. That is why he was removed.

Maybe you are the one who needs to do a little research.

[Bacchus39]

28. an excellent start. an arbitrary larger number isn't going to make things go faster n/t

s

[Jefferson23]

14. Listen to the entire report if you want to know what other countries have

done so far. Being on the ground in Haiti as fast as possible equates with less death, in case you missed that point.

Cuba has also trained Haitian's in the recent past to be doctors, something that greatly impacts for the good of their own people when they returned to Haiti.

[90-percent]

18. I'm fine

I'm fine with the 100 million. I think that's great my country is doing that. I'm happy my tax dollars are being used in such a manner.

My point was to compare this humanitarian aid with the trillions of tax dollars that have gone to already wealthy people that in turn take those tax dollars and reward themselves with six, seven and eight figure bonuses with money given to them by American tax payers.

-90%

[winyanstaz]

19. exactly.....

We could be doing so much more, not just for Haiti but for Americans too with even a small portion of what is being spent on bail outs, bonuses and all the wars.

[Tansy_Gold]

4. That's about 1/3 of 1% of what he asked for the war on Afghanistan

Just to put it in perspective.
$33 billion for bombing and killing poor people in an impoverished nation.
$100 million for helping poor people in another impoverished nation.


Such generosity boggles the mind.

:sarcasm: because someone will accuse me of being serious if I don't.

[dencol]

7. Desperation

Fighting desperation is sure a hell of a lot cheaper than fighting terrorism, too. Maybe if our foreign policy was more compassionate and respectful of maintaining the quality of human life, we wouldn't be fighting all of these wars.

[AtheistCrusader]

8. And we have money for neither.

I feel better about this expenditure, but it would be better if our Troops were home, and we had money to send them in for humanitarian missions like this.

Nothing can generate hundredes of thousands of gallons of clean water on-site and provide heavy lift and search and rescue like a nuclear powered carrier group.

[EFerrari]

12. Somebody needs to revegetate the island.

Is that a word, revegetate? Go over there and organize young people out of work and replant those hillsides.

[cali]

15. sadly, it's more complicated than that. I suggested the same thing

in a conversation with a friend who's a landscape architect.

[grahamhgreen]

9. He could easily shave a billion off his new afghan gamble.

[Regret My New Name]

25. Would an extra billion help at this very moment though?

I'm pretty sure the US and the rest of the world will be putting a lot more money into helping Haiti, but is billions of dollars really the most critical need right now? Would it even be able to be put to use at this very moment in time?

[grahamhgreen]

32. Yes. And, it's money better spent than on setting up a repressive Islamic republic.

[Fearless]

13. I think, following the general response theme, that people don't understand how much this will help.

While $100 Million is not a lot of money in terms of AIG bonuses or wars in the Middle East, it is a lot of money in the most impoverished nation in the Western Hemisphere. It will provide a lot of help. Would more money be nice? Certainly. But remember this money is a good thing.

[EFerrari]

16. Yes, the money is a good thing. Unfortunately, we have so eroded

the Haitian government and so enabled the capitalist vultures that prey upon that nation, along with Canada and France, that the people will probably see very little good from this money.

There is no real public sector in Haiti to makes sure these funds benefit the common good and that's another level of this tragedy.

[Fearless]

22. Then that is the issue we must discuss and not the actual donation.

[EFerrari]

23. Agreed. But if you think it all the way through, this is the time

to discuss this issue. Because there is no healthy public sector or government to mind the store. And we send the two presidents under whose watch the Haitian goverment was destabilized and destroyed to raise money?

:shrug:

[Fearless]

30. I'm not saying it isn't the time, I'm just saying that $100 Million is nothing to scoff at.

[mrbarber]

17. It doesn't matter.

Some people here on DU will paint America in a bad light, no matter what it does.

I'm curious if those who are so vocally denouncing the "meager" sum of 100 million (which is just the first pledge, mind you) donated themselves?

[Cha]

26. Exactly.

[Frank Booth]

31. You nailed it. Some of the comments upthread are clueless.

$100 million is a very generous offer, and we're also sending troops and supplies. And we'll be giving more. What other country in the world is giving anything even close to this?

What would Dubya have done? What about Clinton or Bush I? The only living president who may have reacted as quickly and generously is Jimmy Carter. Obama deserves criticism for many things, but his response to this tragedy is definitely not one of them.

[CountAllVotes]

21. and another 3.5 billion for GMAC

and a crusty $100 million for Haiti. Shows where our priorities are huh? :mad:

:dem: :kick:

[daa]

24. And to think we only borrowed $91.5 BILLION in December

At what part of insolvent does this country not understand.

[Jeneral2885]

27. Auditing of aid

I am all for humanitarian aids for disasters but I also support the idea of monitoring the aid so that it goes directly to the people in need.

[Romulox]

29. This is less than the taxpayer funded bonuses the administration approved for AIG after the bailout.

:shrug:

[timo]

33. it wont help any

look at all the aid and programs that have been sent to haiti over the last 17 or 18 years, the day before the quake haiti was worse of than they were 16 years ago!!! I donate and just hope like hell it gets to somone that needs it instead of going to waste like so much of whats been attempted over there!!