Kevin Drum explains why Katrina will be the end of Bush.

[trumad]

CHRONOLOGY....Here's a timeline that outlines the fate of both FEMA and flood control projects in New Orleans under the Bush administration. Read it and weep:


January 2001: Bush appoints Joe Allbaugh, a crony from Texas, as head of FEMA. Allbaugh has no previous experience in disaster management.


April 2001: Budget Director Mitch Daniels announces the Bush administration's goal of privatizing much of FEMA's work. In May, Allbaugh confirms that FEMA will be downsized: "Many are concerned that federal disaster assistance may have evolved into both an oversized entitlement program...." he said. "Expectations of when the federal government should be involved and the degree of involvement may have ballooned beyond what is an appropriate level."


2001: FEMA designates a major hurricane hitting New Orleans as one of the three "likeliest, most catastrophic disasters facing this country."


December 2002: After less than two years at FEMA, Allbaugh announces he is leaving to start up a consulting firm that advises companies seeking to do business in Iraq. He is succeeded by his deputy, Michael Brown, who, like Allbaugh, has no previous experience in disaster management.


March 2003: FEMA is downgraded from a cabinet level position and folded into the Department of Homeland Security. Its mission is refocused on fighting acts of terrorism.


2003: Under its new organization chart within DHS, FEMA's preparation and planning functions are reassigned to a new Office of Preparedness and Response. FEMA will henceforth focus only on response and recovery.


Summer 2004: FEMA denies Louisiana's pre-disaster mitigation funding requests. Says Jefferson Parish flood zone manager Tom Rodrigue: "You would think we would get maximum consideration....This is what the grant program called for. We were more than qualified for it."


June 2004: The Army Corps of Engineers budget for levee construction in New Orleans is slashed. Jefferson Parish emergency management chiefs Walter Maestri comments: "It appears that the money has been moved in the president's budget to handle homeland security and the war in Iraq, and I suppose that's the price we pay."


June 2005: Funding for the New Orleans district of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is cut by a record $71.2 million. One of the hardest-hit areas is the Southeast Louisiana Urban Flood Control Project, which was created after the May 1995 flood to improve drainage in Jefferson, Orleans and St. Tammany parishes.


August 2005: While New Orleans is undergoing a slow motion catastrophe, Bush mugs for the cameras, cuts a cake for John McCain, plays the guitar for Mark Wills, delivers an address about V-J day, and continues with his vacation. When he finally gets around to acknowledging the scope of the unfolding disaster, he delivers only a photo op on Air Force One and a flat, defensive, laundry list speech in the Rose Garden.


A crony with no relevant experience was installed as head of FEMA. Mitigation budgets for New Orleans were slashed even though it was known to be one of the top three risks in the country. FEMA was deliberately downsized as part of the Bush administration's conservative agenda. After DHS was created, FEMA's preparation and planning functions were taken away.

Actions have consequences. No one could predict that a hurricane the size of Katrina would hit this year, but the slow federal response when it did happen was no accident. It was the result of four years of deliberate Republican policy and budget choices. It's the Bush administration in a nutshell.
http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2005_09/007023.php

[TNOE]

1. Thanks Trumad

One here for the record books!!!

[elehhhhna]

2. what were the other (top 3) most likely catastrophes?

[GOPisEvil]

3. Terrorist attack on NYC, San Francisco earthquake.

Hurricane in New Orleans being #3.

[hvn_nbr_2]

21. They seem to have missed one major catastrophe

The Bush administration.

[Carla in Ca]

55. You know, every time I hear the PSA with Maria Shriver

reminding us to always be ready for a disaster on the radio, she says "California has seen it's share of disasters". And I always mutter to myself "Yes, and your husband is one of them!"

As Randi Rhodes said today "Republicans are through." God, I hope so.

[Why Syzygy]

6. George W. Bush would be #1

This sentence:
"Many are concerned that federal disaster assistance may have evolved into both an oversized entitlement program...." he said. "Expectations of when the federal government should be involved and the degree of involvement may have ballooned beyond what is an appropriate level."

~ Yeah. Everyone should be entitled to at least one distaster, right? Beats bread and water or something?

We need a rescue from this disaster-administration.

[cmd]

4. Bookmarked

I appreciate your summary. cmd

[BillZBubb]

5. Should be the end of Bush, but won't be.

Katrina is just one in a long list of items Bush ignored. The Presidential Daily Briefing in August 2001 should have been the end of Bush. The Downing Street Minutes should have been the end of Bush. Abu Ghraib should have been the end of Bush. Katrina and the failure to protect New Orleans is just one more failure in the long list. The sheeple don't care.

Now, high gas prices, that might be the end of Bush. The sheeple feel that in the one place that motivates them.

[leveymg]

7. Okay, Kevin, so how do we get rid of the Boy King?

There were dozens of good reasons to remove him before Katrina.

Nobody seems to be able to answer the logical next question. The only answers that I can think of are all extraordinary:

* sensing their own doom, the GOP leadership asks for and gets Bush's resignation;

* Bush's family and friends prevail on him to resign for the good of the country;

* the Joint Chiefs of Staff request, with quiet but unmistakable emphasis, that Bush resign;

* Bush has a tragic accident.

Then, there's Cheney, who I suspect is also gravely ill, and will also go.

Who's going to head the remainder of the Bush-Cheney term: Hastert? No, he's going to be indicted. Frisk? No, he's wildly unpopular. A Cabinet Secretary? None of them seem suited to the job.

No, there'll be a committee government of a dozen or so Congressional chairs, military chiefs, and worthies selected. It'll have to be very bi-partisan and centrist.

Probably the best we can all hope for to avert a greater national calamity to come.

[autorank]

14. Good list but since you asked, the "not so extraordinary scenario"

An oldie but a goodie, tried and true:

Endgame

[chomskysright]

53. THIS is an EXPERIMENT to see how tolerant the citizens r to martial law:

Think bigger than bashing the incompetency of FEMA. There's sly purposfulness here and I believe that someone on Citizens for Legitimate Government may have stumbled on it:

"It was suggested to me by someone that it seems like the lack of assistance in New Orleans was meant to provoke people to extreme violence and chaos. It certainly looks that way to me... but what if new orleans is being used as a test case to see, in a real world setting, how easily a motivated, angry populace (and the military personnel forced to do the dirty work) could be subdued and controlled to create a working model of how to impose endless Martial Law throughout the country while keeping those who might resist under the lid... and those in the armed forces in line. It's a thought... because I find it absolutely incredible how inept the response has been... to the point of criminality on the part of the federal government." --c., CLG reader.

http://www.legitgov.org/

Redact to Stanley Milgram's experiments (no longer possible given ethical violations).

Its Stanley Milgram's experiments in vivo: how much torture will someone accept as given to another? Its Kitty Genovese: I didn't hear nothin'. Its PsyOps.

[PA Democrat]

8. Thanks Trumad

I am going to send this to everyone I know.

[Cleita]

9. We needed something that would unite us and freepers alike

against him and it seems like this event will be it. Now we here at DU have known that Bush is a bad president from the beginning, while the freepers were skipping down the road, with their blindfolds and ear plugs on, happy, happy, happy with him.

Now, I'll bet the blindfolda are starting to fall from their eyes. Hopefully, the propaganda mill that is our MSM might stop apologizing and lying for him on Rove's orders. There are signs this is starting to happen.

[GreenPartyVoter]

10. More articles

http://www.newsdissector.org/blog/

[autorank]

11. KICK & RECOMMEND THIS MUTHA...RECOMMEND * RECOMMEND

trumad, you are so on target it's frightening. this needs to be heard and spread all over america. leave it to the WA MONTHLY...where is the NYT and the brain deat WaPOST, up their you know whats, getting their hair done, having a three figure lunch with an advertiser.

true journalism in REAL TIME!!!

[mzmolly]

12. One more nomination. Our actions do have consequences which is why I am

was "ABB."

What a nightmare.

[sundog]

13. thanks for posting this

[cthrumatrix]

15. Sean Hannity will be covering this tonight --- NOT

[theHandpuppet]

16. Soccer Moms thought Bush would keep them "SAFE".

Well watch and learn, you idiots!!!!!!

[steve2470]

17. Recommended ! nt

[Orion The Hunter]

18. Good listing

A nice layout for how this catastrophe worsened by some poor decisions by the administration and Republican-controlled congress.

[KamaAina]

19. Which individuals cut the budget for the Corps of Engineers?

Not "Bush**co". That much is obvious. Was it Bush** himself ("It appears that the money has been moved in the president's budget to handle homeland security and the war in Iraq...")? Rumsfeld? Who?

Whoever it is needs to be dragged out of his office -- whether or not it is Oval -- by Federal marshals, tried, convicted, and imprisoned, preferably alongside the refugees from Orleans Parish Prison. For this was perhaps the most heinous act of criminal negligence in history, leaving New Orleans vulnerable to a catastrophe resulting in possibly thousands of deaths and billions in property damage.

Bear in mind that the most destructive levee breach in N.O., at 17th St., happened hours after the storm had passed, in an area away from Lake Pontchartrain, suggesting that the levee may have been undermined from within (the Lakeview area where it occurred had heavy flooding from the initial storm) -- a sure sign of poor maintenance.

Inj the language of la Nouvelle-Orleans, J'accuse!

Edit: Forgot the Federal marshals. Very important.

[LeftyElvis]

22. That repuke congress did

[KamaAina]

26. I thought the money had been appropriated by Congress

but diverted within the Army to pay for the $%^(%$^&$! war.

[NewWaveChick1981]

20. I have commented to friends all week long

that * is doing his best to avoid having to go "down there" where it's really awful. He had Air Force One dip down just a little so he could get an aerial view of the horror. He'd have been happy to phone it in, I'm sure.

I guess I shouldn't complain. President Asshole did, after all, cut his sabbatical short by two whole days. :sarcasm:

[Nederland]

23. Yawn

Yet another post predicting the demise of Bush.

When will you all learn?

NOT

GONNA

HAPPEN.

[Dawgs]

24. Don't you know...

"Everything changed since 9/11"

[KittyWampus]

25. thank you, this is well organized.

[Up2Late]

27. Excellent summery, bookmarking this so I can point all the...

...trolls that seem to come out from under their bridges at time like these.

[ClintonTyree]

28. A blueprint for disaster...........

thanks for putting this all together in a coherent fashion. We all knew bush "piratized" FEMA, but the dates and people involved were nebulous at best.

You're correct. There are consequences for actions. The consequences of bush's actions are evident in New Orleans right this moment. We all know that life has little meaning to him but this is right in his face. He CAN'T ignore this one. This one hits home more than even 9/11/01 and although we can't pin 9/11 on him officially, his policies CAN be blamed for the inaction in New Orleans the past few days. All of his speeches and actions are too little too late for many. The City of New Orleans was drowning and he continued to play golf, attend fund raisers and birthday parties like at was a situation that didn't deserve immediate attention. He left the Governor, Senators, The Mayor, Parish Presidents......everyone in the lurch while HE played his new presidential guitar.

He's a total disgrace. The MSM isn't going to point this out, it's up to us. Massive numbers of letters from the DU activist Corps must be written immediately. The MSM must be bombarded with this information, we can't let bush off the hook on this one, we CAN'T!

[The Backlash Cometh]

29. Spectacular work.

[CAcyclist]

30. More Detail

"2001: FEMA designates a major hurricane hitting New Orleans as one of the three "likeliest, most catastrophic disasters facing this country.""


http://www.commondreams.org/views05/0901-27.htm

Sidney Blumenthal goes further in his article, reporting that : " In early 2001, the Federal Emergency Management Agency issued a report stating that a hurricane striking New Orleans was one of the three most likely disasters in the U.S., including a terrorist attack on New York City. "

So BOTH disasters were predicted in the SAME report.

[Generator]

31. Well earlier this year a psychic predicted

A WOMAN would bring him down. If it ain't Valerie or Cindy then Katrina should do it. PLEASE. Maybe all combined!

[bobbieinok]

32. !?!?!?!?!? FEMA = OVERSIZED ENTITLEMENT PROGRAM

to the RW, aren't all social programs, INCLUDING SOCIAL SECURITY, 'entitlement programs'

....entitlement means to RW 'you demand something you have no right to'


'"...oversized entitlement program...." he said. "Expectations of when the federal government should be involved and the degree of involvement may have ballooned beyond what is an appropriate level."

[bobbieinok]

33. !?!?!?!!?'...ballooned beyond what is an appropriate level."

[bobbieinok]

34. delete.........failed to read link........sorry

[Straight Shooter]

35. Those blacks who supported bush because of his "culture of life" slogan

What do you suppose they're thinking now, as dead bodies float in New Orleans, most of them being bodies of the poor, black brothers and sisters? The blacks in poverty in New Orleans, they're dispensable, you know. We all understand how the freepers think, "Ain't no big thang, they'll just make more of 'em."

There is another culture of life. It's called taking care of one's own, and bush ain't got that one down at all. Maybe it's too much for his "beautiful mind" that he inherited from his mother.

I am angry and disgusted with The Powers That Be. If New Orleans had been filled with white middle-class folks, I wonder if those funds would have been slashed. I wonder if bush would have been johnny-on-the-spot with pre-hurricane and post-hurricane rescue efforts.

[AceAlmighty82]

36. June 1, 2006

Funds cut in half for public education to help build a shrine in Bush's name over in Iraq.

June 2, 2006

Surprisingly enough the statue is immediately torn down by the Iraqis just in the same way as Hussein.

:sarcasm: I'm just continuing the timeline..but this is just a theory..probably wrong but who knows whats going on in Bush's empty head

[Ravenseye]

37. You Forgot Something

Bush overturned Clinton's wetlands protections measures allowing thousands of acres of wetlands to be developed on since 2001. The wetlands help shield New Orleans from storms just like this.

Just sayin.

[Liberal Isti]

38. Well there you have it...

That about sums up my anger in a nutshell. Thank you so much for posting it. I'm sending it to everyone I know.

[Shredr]

39. Shocking. Nominated.

[NoAmericanTaliban]

40. Don't forget about dropping the ball on the flu shots

What do you expect from an admin. that cannot even make sure that we have enough flu shots. This occurred right around the election & Bush escaped a lot of criticism for this. But the FDA monitors those companies involved, but failed to inspect them properly or not at all. This is just one in a series of incompetencies that will permanently damage America & more will follow unless people start waking up. Good post. Forwarded it to others.

[petro]

41. Katrina Timeline: Why Bush is to blame for disaster

"Bodies float through the streets of New Orleans, thousands are predicted dead, one million people are expected homeless, and we find this disaster was completely avoidable."

http://www.ledgeofliberty.com/2005/09/katrina_timelin.html

[donkeyotay]

42. I didn't think I could be angrier with my government

"No one could predict that a hurricane the size of Katrina would hit this year, but the slow federal response when it did happen was no accident.It was the result of four years of deliberate Republican policy and budget choices."

The contractors must be salivating. Does anyone still believe that privatizing saves money? Whatever would have been spent on the "oversized entitlement program" would have been cheap compared to what this will cost.

[slay]

43. Really, really amazing post

Nominated for greatest. If only this would be allowed to make the lead story on the corporate media nightly news.

[opihimoimoi]

44. Vote for Idiot, he gets more Idiots, result....BS and disasters...

[jurassicpork]

45. Can we spell I-r-o-n-y, boys and girls?

"Many are concerned that federal disaster assistance may have evolved into both an oversized entitlement program...."

You mean like Halliburton, KBR, Bechtel, MBNA, Exxon/Mobil, etc?

"Expectations of when the federal government should be involved and the degree of involvement may have ballooned beyond what is an appropriate level."

You mean like the federal government itself that's bloated more than it ever was under eight years of Clinton?

JP
http://jurassicpork.blogspot.com

[Roland99]

46. Does anybody have a link to the actual FEMA report??

[SlipperySlope]

52. I need the ACTUAL FEMA REPORT

I need a link to the actual report, not a link to somebody claiming the report exists. Anybody?

[Nothing Without Hope]

47. It's not just funding. Read through this OP and thread and you will see.

Albaugh was not only incompetent, he's a Bolton clone - so insanely abusive and disruptive that veteran, experienced, valuable FEMA management left. Read the description of this in that same OP.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4523783
Thread title: CNN/New Orleans:"Mayor blasts failure to patch levee breeches" and that's {only the beginning:}

[PinkyisBlue]

59. Allbaugh

December 2002: "...Allbaugh announces he is leaving to start up a
consulting firm that advises companies seeking to do
business in Iraq...."

Huh?? He must have had specific knowledge that we were going to invade and control Iraq ahead of time. This is another indication that the invasion was definitely going to happen (and facts were being fixed).

A lot of these Bush thugs had visions of pulling in lots of money after the Iraq invasion, I mean democratization. It was supposed to be a free market utopia.

[PurpleChez]

48. george w bush -- BURN IN HELL!

Maybe not my most eloquent thought ever, but I have long since lost any sense of decency regarding * or any of his accomplices. I will welcome every pain and misery fate might choose to heap upon them. They have destroyed 100's of 1000's of lives. I don't give a good god damn what happens to any of them. Screw them all.

[AX10]

49. Democrats need the congress back in 2006.

[PurpleChez]

50. Damn straight!

But if we get it back do you think the Dems will actually rediscover their cojones and hold the bushies accountable for their atrocities? Or will they cave and send * a thank you note for being such a nice guy?

[warrens]

51. I think the outrage is going to be bipartisan over this stuff

Right now, the attention is on a lot of very poor black people, but there were a lot of very white Smirk voters who have lost everything, died horribly, or witnessed total horror. It ain't like Mississippi and Alabama and white sections of Louisiana have had it easy.

There are going to be a lot of very embarassing questions, and this is what newspapers love: a paper trail. They did this right out in the open, and like their far sneakier war policy, it's backfiring on them bigtime.

[expatriate]

54. Thank you, Trumad

I'm sending it to everyone I know and urge others to do the same.

[marions ghost]

56. excellent

thank you trumad

[rucky]

57. Bookmarked & Recommended

we'll need this information later. I guarantee it.

[Usrename]

58. nice work trumad, very nice

Also, the Bible thumpin little weasle hasn't mentioned prayer once, publicly, that I know of. I know he didn't in his disaster laundry list speech because I was listening for the resounding silence about prayer. He's a feel-good Christian, can't pray now there's a disaster. Piece of unholy...

Thanks for a good read.

[Time for change]

60. Critically important information

that every voter should have before voting in 06 and 08 -- and should have known better before voting in 04.