Uh-oh...Blanco...

[jjmalonejr]

CNN just had a story that included tape of Blanco expressing regret over not specifically asking for federal troops earlier. The tape was made during the course of a CNN interview on the Wednesday after the hurricane. She called the WH after that.

It really didn't look good for her.

[GreenPartyVoter]

1. *head thunking on table*

------------------------------------------------------
URGENT yet easy! Hold the government accountable for Katrina's aftermath
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4736062

[jjmalonejr]

2. huh?

i don't get what you mean

[GreenPartyVoter]

32. I mean it got tired from spinning around like a top from all the changing

stories and crashed down on my desk. *lol*

[yourout]

3. This is going to spread like wildfire.....

Hope it is BS.

[jjmalonejr]

6. It's not BS, I heard it with my own ears.

I mean, the whole federal response was a total cluster-fuck regardless, but this little point makes Blanco look weak and indecisive.

Gives the WH a lame excuse for their failure to act.

Or am I missing something?

[katinmn]

44. Blanco is the unwilling fall-guy for Bush unless she comes out fighting..

[Be Brave]

53. She's too busy with the relief effort to defend herself. n/t

[okieinpain]

65. hahahahahahahaha!!!!! too funny.

[leesa]

51. Nope. Bush declared it a federal disaster area. FEMA should have assessed

the need and provided what was necessary. It was under federal control. The didn't assess or prepare for the situation.

[kbm8795]

71. I didn't see this, but I did see her press conferences during the crisis

and frankly, it seemed rather obvious to me, and anyone else watching, that when she was begging for help, it was for every bit of possible help - including troops. When she told the President that she needed everything he could send, that included troops. Her failure to specifically request use of the active armed forces isn't a point of weakness - if the President was informed, he could have OFFERED that use himself. He didn't.

[6000eliot]

4. Rove could have written that report

I don't doubt that mistakes were made by everyone, but this is just blame-shifting bullshit. The feds could have seen what was going on. They just needed to turn on their fucking TVs. They had other priorities. Bush playing guitar and eating cake isn't going to go away because Blanco didn't make a "specific request" for troops until Wednesday.

[jjmalonejr]

12. I hear you.

I'm just reacting to the video of her. It was a private moment between her and and aide (I think) where she was openly fretting about not requesting troops. We can all shrug it off as bureaucratic nonsense, but it's difficult to explain why SHE seemed to think it was a rather big deal at the time.

I'm just saying, it looks bad, and it's video.

[merwin]

5. Doesn't matter. Bush is making himself look worse by not expressing

any regret. The people KNOW that he fucked up, and are waiting for him to apologize.

However, our party is the party of responsibility, therefore we do have the responsibility of letting people know what they did wrong and how they will make it better.

[zoeb]

7. i thought they declared a federal disaster on Saturday

Doesn't that give the go ahead to send in federal troops?

[applegrove]

60. Apparently that wasn't clear enough for Bush. Nagin had to beg

for some leadership so Bush sent him Honore on Tuesday. Monday Governor begged for "everything you got". Bush had a meeting on Monday (an hour long I believe) where they discussed sending in the troops and chose not to. Wednesday - after playing hot potato with her phone calls, she got through to Bush and asked for 40,000 troops.

[Be Brave]

8. I suspect she regretted it because she realized Bush did not

understand what "I need everything you've got" means. She should have realized earlier on that she was dealing with a dodo bird. (My apologies to the dodo bird.)

[MadisonProgressive]

14. That's what I think

that she was sorry she wasn't EXPLICIT in citing FEMA's job description to them.:eyes:

[oasis]

54. The new, Bush improved feds need an engraved invitation. They are

mostly political appointees.

[madaboutharry]

30. No need for an apology

The Dodo bird has been extinct since pre-historic times, if I remember my tour of the natural history museum correctly! On a serious note, she may have later realized she was dealing with someone incoherent. Bush is so stupid, nothing sinks in.

[kestrel91316]

52. Nope, modern man did in the dodo bird in the 1800s, IIRC.

[iamjoy]

9. No Wonder We Lose

When our leaders are fools who say things like that. Dubya got amazingly popular never apologizing.

I didn't see the story, and I don't know her, so maybe I shouldn't speculate, but, is it possible she just feels guilty? I mean, thousands of her people are dead, if she's a decent person, that has to really trouble her - just tear her up inside. Some people in that situation, or position might even look back at what they should have done. There are some those who always want to blame others, even when it is their fault and others who always accept the blame, even when it isn't their fault. Perhaps she is the latter.

[Pirate Smile]

18. She was speaking quietly to an aide when they were not supposed to

be on camera. She wasn't talking to the reporter or anyone other then her press secretary. CNN showed the footage.

[iamjoy]

24. Not Too Smart Of Her

speaking quietly to an aide and they weren't supposed to show it?

These kinds of things often get overheard and reported, like that idiot shmuck Repub. who made the crack about God cleaning up New Orleans' public housing.

I don't think she just fell off the turnip truck yesterday, she knows how the game is played. But I bet she is incredibly tired and stressed and distraught and maybe, just maybe she really isn't thinking of political advantage and covering her ass. Maybe unlike most politicians and activists in this country she is actually thinking of the victims.

[unrepuke]

48. "Bombs are going to Russia in 5 minutes."...another Repub Idiot overheard

[okieinpain]

67. probably so, but when one is swimming with sharks it best to cover

one's ass.

[DemsUnited]

23. The latter, definately. In the clip, she was a woman in pain and wondering

if she'd done everything she could to minimize the pain Katrina had inflicted on her state.

[iamjoy]

33. That's The Problem With Women In Politics

written as a woman. And only half joking.

This is a generalization, but we're too sensitive. Oh sure, a woman politician can be tough when she is insulted, can play political hardball - not that kind of sensitive. But, other people suffering, especially if she is just the tiniest bit responsible...

On the other end of the spectrum, when a woman doesn't get emotional or seems too business like and stoic about suffering she gets labelled cold and heartless.

I really feel sorry for her. Horrible thing to feel for a governor who deserrves respect, not sympathy.

[rateyes]

47. Personally, I want somebody who understands the

pain regular people are going through. Bush has NEVER been poor. I doubt he's even SEEN the projects. He has no thoughts about anything other than "how does this affect me?" If he hadn't been pushed by the country--he wouldn't have even pretended to give a rat's ass about the people in NOLA, and I don't care what Pickles says.

[DemonFighterLives]

49. Good post

She feels the guilt that dubya never feels. They will try to bury her with these remarks.
The buck stops with dubby and FEMA though.
Nagin was on Meet the Press and was dogged about the bus picture. They didn't have the drivers.
Brownie and FEMA and Dubby did a heckuva screwup job..period.

[rateyes]

10. I just saw that...

when someone says to the President of the United States, "send me everything you've got---that includes troops. And, if she didn't specifically SAY "troops," then why the hell didn't * ask the damned question: "Do you want troops?" And, how the hell did * think he was going to get other kind of aid to people in NOLA without sending the troops? It doesn't pass the giggle test.

Bush is a damned joke for a commander-in-chief. And, since when does the commander-in-chief of the armed forces NEED anyone's permission to send federal troops into ANYWHERE to protect American citizens. This fish rots from the head down. And, * is SUPPOSED to be the head.

Edit to add: I think when she said "I guess I should have requested troops specifically, she was saying---"You have to spell out everything for that dumbass up in Washington--or in Crawford, or wherever the hell the dumbass is."

[Pushed To The Left]

11. It's not looking good for the entire government lately

There needs to be an independent investigation into this thing.

[jjmalonejr]

13. That is SO true

The important thing is to figure out what the hell went wrong.

[Be Brave]

15. BTW, that report also said that the feds acknowledged that

it would have been better to deploy the NG instead of troops, anyway. But by the time this was said in the report, the damage had been done.

[jjmalonejr]

17. You're right about that.

This "formal request" b.s. is a total red herring.

[Pirate Smile]

16. My only thought is that if FEMA had the buses in NOLA on Wednesday

to evacuate people along with the water and food, things would have been much, much better.

Even if you take the troops out of the equation, all of the supplies they were promised (officials were told just make through 48 hours and the cavalry will arrive) didn't show for 5 or 6 days instead of 2 days.

They did mention in the CNN piece (just as a side note although it seemed more important) that people (experts? I can't remember exactly how they defined who stated this) did think it was better to have National Guard instead of Federal troops because they can do law enforcement.

[jjmalonejr]

19. All good points.

Is everybody here listening to this?

[Pirate Smile]

27. From Wash Post today:

"At the Superdome, city officials reckoned that 9,000 people had arrived by evening to ride out the storm. FEMA had sent seven trailers full of food and water -- enough, it estimated, to supply two days of food for as many as 22,000 people and three days of water for 30,000. Ebbert said he knew conditions in the Superdome would be "horrible," but Hurricane Pam had predicted a massive federal response within two days, and Ebbert said the city's plan was to "hang in there for 48 hours and wait for the cavalry."

and from the NYT today:

"The governor of Louisiana was "blistering mad." It was the third night after Hurricane Katrina drowned New Orleans, and Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco needed buses to rescue thousands of people from the fetid Superdome and convention center. But only a fraction of the 500 vehicles promised by federal authorities had arrived.

Ms. Blanco burst into the state's emergency center in Baton Rouge. "Does anybody in this building know anything about buses?" she recalled crying out.

They were an obvious linchpin for evacuating a city where nearly 100,000 people had no cars. Yet the federal, state and local officials who had failed to round up buses in advance were now in a frantic hunt. It would be two more days before they found enough to empty the shelters."

They try to blame the bus issue on all authorities in the last sentence but at the beginning they state that the buses were PROMISED BY THE FEDS.

[stillcool]

20. ...hmmm....

I am sooooo tired of 'media' telling me what I did or did not see. I don't give a flying frig who asked for what, when, where, and how....I watched for three days when NO help came to those people. I have read... http://www.katrinatimeline.org/ I have downloaded manuals from the FEMA website on the role of the federal govt in a disaster. Nagin, Blanco, and Landreau can all lose their jobs...but that doesn't change one iota what I saw. Why would anyone expect perfection from these individuals?..oops i forgot...there is a d after their name.

[rateyes]

26. I saw groups...and was part of one...

that sent aid on their own without being asked...just loaded up the trucks and went, and got help to people BEFORE * even got back to Washington. HE IS A DAMNED JOKE OF A "LEADER." HE DIDN'T LEAD SHIT, on or after 9-11---He hasn't led well the "war on terror"--got us into a quagmire in Iraq---has run the economy into the damned ground---we had a 5 trillion dollar surplus when he took office---a hell of a lot more than is going to be needed to clean up the Katrina mess---but, * gave it all away to his damned cronies, who also bear blame for this crap---and, * fiddled while NOLA drowned. Comparing * to Nero is a damned insult to Nero. Sorry for the rant, but I am PISSED!

[DemsUnited]

21. What a crock of shit!!!

Blanco talks to Bush on Monday, says "I need help, give me all you got" and he waits until Wednesday until she specifically asks for federal troops before doing anything?

That's like the ER nurse calling the doctor saying "the patient's dying, I need help now" and the doctor deciding to wait until she calls back with specifics before leaving the golf course.

In the meantime, where's FEMA with basic life support? Communications, food, medical, BUSES, pretty much everything FEMA's responsible for didn't show up either!! If FEMA had done their job right, NO ONE would have had to ask for active duty troops because they probably wouldn't have been necessary!!

[electron_blue]

25. exactly

If Bush had rushed back Sunday night, he could have at least APPEARED to have looked busy and as if he was helping all he could. But he didn't. He stayed on vacation obvlivious to the catastrophe, happily so.

[rateyes]

28. Damned straight!

Kick.

[applegrove]

35. She was standing in a room full of military personnel & nobody gave her

a number of troops. She pulled 40,000 out of the air. She assumed when she said "give me everything you've got" the message would get through.

You create a vacuum around your mark and then you watch them spin. WH even played hot potato with her very call Wednesday. And the Pentagon came out with a "pity play" to reporters all Wednesday long: "why are you feeling for the victims and not us".

[Pirate Smile]

37. A little perspective on our "leader". Compare him to one 40 years ago.

"In September 1965, a massive hurricane hit New Orleans. By the next day the president-a Texan in a time of war-was in the city, visiting a shelter. With no electricity in the darkness there, Lyndon Baines Johnson held a flashlight to his face and proclaimed, "This is the president of the United States and I'm here to help you!" Almost precisely 40 years later, when another horrific hurricane hit the city, the president was, again, a Texan in wartime. But rather than hurry to New Orleans from his Texas ranch, George W. Bush decided, three days after Katrina hit, to fly back to Washington first. "

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=103x155749

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9287435/

[aquart]

61. But it worked on 9/11!

He flew to Nebraska, he flew everywhere BUT where Americans were dead and dying. He showed up DAYS later and people called him a leader and hero.

How was poor George supposed to know that a hurricane was different?

[Emit]

70. Bush Sr's response to Andrew was a f-up, too

Like father, like son?

http://66.102.7.104/search?q=cache:XEysm32xCe0J:www.psywarrior.com/PSYOPHurricaneAndrew.html+Hurrican+Andrew+deaths&hl=en

I have always believed that Hurricane Andrew was one of the major reasons that President George Bush failed to be reelected. Nightly television news showed American citizens living among the rubble for days. The television anchors implied that the Federal Government did very little to ease their suffering. Partisan politics may have been involved, since the Democratic Governor of Florida apparently hesitated before asking for federal aid. Three days passed between Andrew's assault and the arrival of federal help. Kate Hale, the Dade County emergency director, went on live national television on 27 August with tears in her eyes and castigated the federal government. Some of her comments were:

Enough is enough. Quit playing like a bunch of kids. Where in the Hell is the cavalry? For God's sakes, where are they? We are going to have more casualties, because we are going to have more people dehydrated. People without water. People without food. Babies without formula. If we do not get more food into the south end of Dade County in a very short period of time, we are going to have more casualties!

We have a catastrophic disaster. We are essentially the walking wounded. We have appealed through the State to the Federal Government. We've had a lot of people down here for press conferences, but Dade County is on its own. Dade County is being caught in the middle of something and we are being victimized. Quit playing like a bunch of kids and get us aid! Sort out your political games afterward!

We are all about ready to drop, and the reinforcements are not getting in fast enough. We need better National Guard down here...President Bush was down here. I'd like him to follow up on the commitments he made.

At the time of the speech, three days after the storm, 250,000 Florida residents were struggling to survive without foot, water and shelter. The nationwide uproar reached Washington DC and President Bush immediately ordered 30,000 troops to the disaster area. Lieutenant General Samuel Ebbeson (a former deputy of General Schwarzkopf during the Persian Gulf War) was placed in charge of the military relief effort.

http://www.commondreams.org/headlines05/0901-01.htm

The slow response to Katrina and poor federal leadership is a replay of 1992's mishandling of Hurricane Andrew, said former FEMA chief of staff Jane Bullock, a 22-year veteran of the agency.

Bullock blamed inexperienced federal leadership. She noted that Chertoff and FEMA Director Michael Brown had no disaster experience before they were appointed to their jobs.

The slowness is all too familiar to Kate Hale. As Miami's disaster chief during Hurricane Andrew, Hale asked: "Where the hell's the cavalry?"

"I'm looking at people who are begging for ice and water and (a) presence," Hale said Wednesday. "I'm seeing the same sort of thing that horrified us after Hurricane Andrew. ... I realize they've got a huge job. Nobody understands better than I do what they're trying to respond to, but ..."

http://www.bariumblues.com/deadly_silences.htm

But I was only one amongst thousands of severely injured victims who struggled to survive the aftermath. For ten long days, we were roped-off from the outside world by United States military forces, leaving us stranded with no food, no water, no medical supplies or shelter. Suffering from severe shell-shock, we waited and waited for rescue teams to arrive but that just never happened. None of the injured in the roped-off areas were ever rescued from the devastation. It was the worst gut-wrenching betrayal I have ever experienced. I saw grown men lying on the ground in the fetal position, moaning and groaning pathetically, as they tried to hug and rock themselves.

My son was amongst them.

Don't get me wrong, United States military forces were indeed present in the roped-off areas within hours of Andrew ending. But they were not there to help survivors. The National Guard, along with the Coast Guard, the Army, F.E.M.A., Metro-Dade Police, State Police and local police, removed dead bodies and body-parts as quickly as possible, during those first ten days of the aftermath. Horrified survivors watched as both uniformed and civilian clothed men searched the rubble and filled body bags. After which, the body bags were stacked in military vehicles or huge refrigerator trucks normally used to transport food, only to drive off and leave the stranded injured to fend for themselves. Not until I managed to escape the aftermath, did I discover the thermo-king sections of these same refrigerator trucks jammed packed with wall-to-wall body bags, subsequently ended up being stored at Card Sound Navy Base, located in an isolated area just above the Florida Keys. The inside temperatures kept cool by portable generators until the bodies were either incinerated or just plain dumped into huge open grave pits.

Those working the body-pick-up-operation were forced to take what is known as "The Oath of Sworn Secrecy," strictly enforced by the government. Many of whom plunged into shock once exposed to the ghastly devastation and countless mutilated bodies.

[flyarm]

72. i lost my home in the 1994 northridge earthquake...and i will tell

you fema was in LA pronto!! they did an incredible job...
my house was inspected the day after the quake...fema was walking down our streets in teams a few hours after the quake...checking the gas lines..remember we had gas lines exploding in the streets everywhere..we had neighborhood leaders who were supposed to check gas to homes was shut off..our neighbor hood leader lived across the street from me...and when fema came through the streets they asked who were the old people so they could check on them..now this was a couple hours after the quake..they set up scheds to check our homes that first day,.for safety...it looked like after a bombing in beriut..it was horrible..but they were there..and they immediately built a tent city and got supplies in immediately..all this under james lee witt..he was incredible...and so was clinton!!

i watched this knowing what it is like to loose ones home..but never could i dream these poor people would be put through the travesty they were..its hard enough to loose everything and go through the disaster and be in that kind of utter shock ..but then to be left..with no water, no food and to be subjected to what a dog wouldn't be treated like..i was in horror and went through de ja vue..andi felt the fear and shock in my stomach..i was in disbelief...and damn angry...no one..no one ..should ever ever ever go through anything like this...
and i assure you every disaster there are mistakes...thats inevitable...but this??

this was not a mistake..this was negligence by the feds..this was negligence by bush, this was deliberate...this was deliberate.. as i am a woman!!

i have not one iota of doubt about that!

no governor , no mayor , no city council could handle anything like this without the feds..i will assure you of that...

the buck stops in *hes lap..no place else..i dint give a damn what anyone says..the blame is in *es lap!!!!!!!!!!!

clinton was like stink on shit when the northridge earthquake hit..he was on top of it immediately and so was james lee witt!

we did not go without water or food! and the scope of our damage was unbelievable...but nothing like all that water...

but under clinton the mid west had just had horrible floods on the missouri river and fema did an incredible job..aug 1993 i think it was......

we did have one prob with the northridge earthquake ..bob dole!

bob dole was saying right after the earthquake that he was going to withhold aide for a balanced budget...

well i used a response persons portable phone and i called the kansas city times..and i let dole have it...my husband had been a professional athlete in kansas city so i got a huge second page article smearing and slamming dole..and that afternoon dole signed off on the aide for LA...dole was playing politics..and i took him to the barn and then some...,..and made him look like the asshole he is in his home town paper...

but this in the gulf..thereis no excuse..none..and not one of those poor people should have ever gone through what they had to endure..it was inhuman...and if we do not hold * accountable and remove him from office..well then we are not worth the salt of carrying our flag!

oh ps...* also had epa lie about air quality in ny after 9/11 and many have lung damage..and respiratory damage..permenant..

pss..i live in fla and nj..i live on an key in fla on the beach ,..last yr when francis came across the state it became a tropical storm..well i live directly on the gulf..when it hit the gulf it became a cat 1 & cat 2 it sat over us for 2 days..and circled..well we did not get one evac..not one...until 2pm the first day when they only told us..opps bridges are all closed..nothing telling us they were ..going to close the bridges..no evac at all...so i was stuck sitting through the hurricane..terrified with slightly over 100mph winds...i was absolutely terrified...
so jeb didnt do such a good job either because we were never warned..we were told it would only be a tropical storm and 50 mph winds..well ..it was a hell of alot more than that!!

but still nothing like what these people of the gulf went through..there is no excuse..none people..and danation..if * is not held accountable..then we are the spinless gutless humans, and miserable Americans!!

each and everyone of us should be on the phone every day demanding congress appoint an independant coucil or investigator!!

anything less we have failed our fellow americans...

the next disaster..could be you..would you want to be treated like animals or worse??

shame on us if we fail our fellow americans!

fly

[nadinbrzezinski]

22. the FEDS screwed up

this is the memme, the buck stops with bush, spread the meme and this... have you heard of out of context quotes, they are good, and back to their old games

[never_get_over_it]

29. OK so even if Blanco screwed up

which I don't believe she did - what about MS - Mike Malloy announced on Friday - two days ago almost two weeks after the storm of some city there that was still waiting for FEMA help - guess Hailey Barbour forgot to ask.

Federal Emergency Management Agency - not LA - not MS - no AL - not FL Emergency Management Agency - but Federal - they were suppose to take control on Friday and Saturday before the storm.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/9287434/site/newsweek/

"Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco, a motherly but steely figure known by the nickname Queen Bee, knew that she needed help. But she wasn't quite sure what. At about 8 p.m., she spoke to Bush. "Mr. President," she said, "we need your help. We need everything you've got.""

"Bush, the governor later recalled, was reassuring. But the conversation was all a little vague. Blanco did not specifically ask for a massive intervention by the active-duty military. "She wouldn't know the 82nd Airborne from the Harlem Boys' Choir," said an official in the governor's office, who did not wish to be identified talking about his boss's conversations with the president. There are a number of steps Bush could have taken, short of a full-scale federal takeover, like ordering the military to take over the pitiful and (by now) largely broken emergency communications system throughout the region. But the president, who was in San Diego preparing to give a speech the next day on the war in Iraq, went to bed."

If Bush supporters are stuck on stupid - and want to blame Blanco I guess there is nothing we can do about it. But given the pResident's approval rating it looks like even if people feel Blanco screwed up they know * did too.

The Buck is suppose to stop with the commander in chief not the Governor of LA.

[applegrove]

31. And then when she tried to call the WH to request the troops - they

played hot potato with her call. No advice whatsoever to her. Nobody to cut through the bureaucracy. And no FEMA to do its job of coordination. Blanco was hung out to dry in those first few days. She admits she pulled the number 40,000 out of the air. That is how much advice she had.

Bush WH sure plays a mean game of monkey in the middle when you are not a partisan.

Blanco can claim she didn't have the experience. Now how many Hurricanes & Emergencies has Bush dealt with?

[rateyes]

34. But "Brownie" did a heck of job...

didn't he! sarcasm Gag me with a damned spoon. How does that prick sleep at night?

[jasmeel]

38. Doesn't the firing of "Brownie" suggest guilt on the part of FEMA?

That is huge. * NEVER corrects or fires anyone because it would make him look guilty. So the Brown firing seems like a suggestion of big time guilt to me.

[Pirate Smile]

41. Brownie wasn't fired. He was sent back to the home office in DC.

He is still the head of FEMA. He is planning for the next disaster.

Doesn't that make you feel safer?

[rateyes]

43. Technically, he wasn't fired...

still has his title. Still getting paid. Just not "in charge" of this one. I guess he'll get an easier job when Ophelia makes landfall.

[Tennessee Gal]

36. Doesn't matter what Blanco asked for....

Just for the record, the law mandates FEMA's responsibility in times of a state of emergency. Therefore, when Blanco and Bush declared Louisiana to be in a state of emergency it became FEMA's (Department of Homeland Security) responsibility to abide by the law.

From FEMA:

When the state and local governments are overwhelmed by a disaster, they make a request for federal aid through a Presidential disaster or emergency declaration. Typically, federal assistance is financial. However, the federal government may be asked to mobilize resources from any number of federal agencies, and to participate in the response. This is when the government implements the Federal Response Plan.

http://www.fema.gov/about/respond.shtm

Federal Response Plan:

Pursuant to HSPD-5, the Secretary of Homeland Security is responsible for coordinating Federal operations within the United States to prepare for, respond to, and recover from terrorist attacks, major disasters, and other emergencies. HSPD-5 further designates the Secretary of Homeland Security as the “principal Federal official” for domestic incident management. In this role, the Secretary is also responsible for coordinating Federal resources utilized in response to or recovery from terrorist attacks, major disasters, or other emergencies.

http://www.dhs.gov/interweb/assetlibrary/NRPbaseplan.pdf


THE LAWS SAY NOTHING ABOUT AWAITING INSTRUCTIONS!!!!

[rateyes]

39. Have you noticed that in the Federal Governments

declaration of a "state of emergency" it didn't include Orleans or Jefferons Parish? WTF is up with that?

[Emit]

69. There was a post about this last night here at DU

Can't find the thread now, but it went something like this:

Blanco asked Bush to declare a Federal State of Emergency for the state of Louisiana on Saturday, August 27, a day earlier than her Republican counterparts in Mississippi and Alabama did.

Saturday, August 27, Governor Blanco asked George Bush to declare a Federal State of Emergency for the state of Louisiana.

http://gov.louisiana.gov/Press_Release_detail.asp?id=976

Bush complied with her request - but, strangely, his declaration for State of Emergency omits the Parishes on the Gulf Coast, which are going to be hit the hardest by the storm and flooding, and require the most help fastest.

From the White House website:


~snip~ 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 in the parishes of Allen, Avoyelles, Beauregard, Bienville, Bossier, Caddo, Caldwell, Claiborne, Catahoula, Concordia, De Soto, East Baton Rouge, East Carroll, East Feliciana, Evangeline, Franklin, Grant, Jackson, LaSalle, Lincoln, Livingston, Madison, Morehouse, Natchitoches, Pointe Coupee, Ouachita, Rapides, Red River, Richland, Sabine, St. Helena, St. Landry, Tensas, Union, Vernon, Webster, West Carroll, West Feliciana, and Winn.

Specifically, FEMA is authorized to identify, mobilize, and provide at its discretion, equipment and resources necessary to alleviate the impacts of the emergency. Debris removal and emergency protective measures, including direct Federal assistance, will be provided at 75 percent Federal funding. ~snip~

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/20...20050827-1.html


Governor Blanco had to issue a second letter, explicitly listing the previously omitted Parishes.

http://gov.louisiana.gov/Press_Release_detail.asp?id=973

So basically when Blanco requested a State of Emergency, Bush declared it for all the Parishes except for those who would actually need the most help and need it quickest.


This is the link that accompanied the post:
http://www.bobharris.com/content/view/637/1

Curious, isn't it?

[jasmeel]

40. *bots don't read fema manuals unless instructed to by * or his

cohorts. God forbid they actually want to find out the truth!

[Lori Price CLG]

42. I had a feeling it wouldn't take her long to cave in to the Bush cabal.

[DemsUnited]

45. She didn't cave. On Monday, she said "give me all you got".

On Wednesday (day of tape) she realized she wasn't specific enough for the moron in chief 'cause it was two days later and she hadn't gotten squat so she immediately calls the President and, after getting the runaround for hours, asks for 40000 troops. On Thursday/Friday, the Bushcos are pressing her to give up control of the National Guard in return for troops. She says no way, hires Witt, and things start getting better from there.

The Bushcos are going to have to come up with something better than "she wasn't specific" to pin any blame on Blanco. Aren't they the ones who are talking about cutting through the red tape and bureaucracy? What else did they want her to do on Monday, stop managing a crisis to type up a specific request in triplicate??

[HR_Pufnstuf]

50. Yes, and on Monday, this was said.

RANCHO CUCAMONGA, Calif. (AP) — President Bush on Monday pledged extensive federal help for victims of Hurricane Katrina to "get your lives back in order." The government put into effect a massive emergency assistance program that included rushing baby formula, communications equipment, generators, water and ice into hard-hit areas.

------

"It's a storm now that is moving through and now is the time for governments to help people get their feet on the ground," Bush said. "For those of you who are concerned about whether or not we are prepared to help — don't be. We are."

He added, "We're in place, we've got equipment in place, supplies in place and once we're able to assess the damage we'll be able to move in and help those good folks in the affected areas."

The Federal Emergency Management Agency had medical teams, rescue squads and groups prepared to supply food and water poised in a semicircle around New Orleans. (Related item: FEMA ready to test recovery procedures)

"I was impressed with the evacuation. Once it was ordered it was very smooth," FEMA Director Michael Brown said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/washington/2005-08-29-aid-agency_x.htm

[Pirate Smile]

46. This was video from the Wednesday after the storm. It wasn't new.

I mean it was the first time I've seen it but it is old footage, taped on the Wednesday after the storm hit (I believe).

[demgrrrll]

55. If you see someone laying in the middle of the road bleeding you do

not just walk by because they did not ask you in just the right way for help. Well you didn't say specifically exactly what MD you wanted me to call so I 'm not going to call anyone. That is what Bush did. Now you hear all the crazy stories about how Bush was getting his information from Chertoff who got his information from Brown who did not know there were people at the convention center so no one knew there was a problem? Bush screwed up. Nothing in the original post changes that equation. There is more to this than meets the eye.

[bobbieinok]

63. except the priest and the pharisee....+ then comes the Good Samaitan

[bobbieinok]

64. except the priest and the pharisee....+ then comes the Good Samaritan

[HuskerDU]

56. Good grief. Anyone who would believes that * deserves no

blame sure thinks very little of America. A real President shows up in a time of crisis, cuts through the red tape and provides support and relief to the American people.

That is the very minimum we should expect from a President. * left Americans behind just like when he was awol from the guard. The man is a traitor and it shouldn't matter what political party you're in to see that.

[1songbird]

57. This is absolute bullshit!!!!!!

Bush is the freaking President of the United States. He does not need to wait for a damn specific request in order to protect citizens. He did nothing because he's a piece of shit and they(repugs) just wanted to score political points. There was nothing that Blanco could have done to win in this situation. Remember that FEMA was actively working against rescue efforts. If the government had stayed the hell out of the way perhaps the stranded evacuees could have had water that Walmart tried to deliver or Gore's chartered planes could have been used to atleast get the elderly out or the superdome and convention centers.

Blanco needs to wake the hell up and realize that she is being played. If Bush's elitist ass were up for re-election he would not have given a damn about specific request. He let those people suffer and die in some cases to try and hurt Dems. Sorry for the cursing. This just makes me so damn mad!!!

:grr:

[highplainsdem]

58. US law REQUIRED the feds to give her the advice she needed

to request help, including troops.

See my post about this at http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=104x4741514

[Be Brave]

59. I watched the replay of the report. Basically, Blanco's regret was

"I should have made it clear (to Shrub) that I wanted troops," according to Blanco's press secretary. The lesson: When talking to a dense person, talk slowly and clearly.

[Tatiana]

62. She should have just quoted from the NRP. n/t

[Be Brave]

68. NRP? Please clarify. n/t

[Tatiana]

74. Our National Response Plan. n/t

[alcibiades_mystery]

66. You still harping on this jjmalonejr?

Didn't you get all your "Oh my god it's all overs" out a few days ago?

:eyes:

And yet, despite your claim (wish?) that Blanco will be blamed, most Americans still continue to see through the right wing smokescreen and hold Bush at least partially culpable.

:rofl:

AaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH! OMG! Are we finished? Are we doomed? :rofl:

[stevietheman]

73. What Blanco did or didn't do is immaterial -- this was under fed control..

from August 26 forward. If FEMA wasn't there and doing what it was supposed to do on Tuesday (day after the hurricane), then FEMA and Bush is to blame. Period.

[mzmolly]

76. Exactly. Nagin and Blanco are not much of an issue at this point.

Nagin claims he told people to have their own food/water for 3 days as well. The bottom line - and the concern for Americans is that it took the feds so long to respond to a disaster of this magnitude.

Do we know when Jeb requested aid?

[mzmolly]

75. I think what this means is that the FEDS are so inept that they need about

a one year notice. Again, what if this were a terrorist attack, how much notice would we have had?