Bush Claims Recovery Efforts “Are Not Acceptable” - The Blame Lies on His

[kerrygoddess]

Bush Claims Recovery Efforts “Are Not Acceptable” - The Blame Lies on His Shoulders
September 2nd, 2005

Bush claimed this morning that recovery efforts in New Orleans “are not acceptable.” Pardon my language here… but No Shit Sherlock! The blame for the unacceptable rescue efforts lies firmly on your shoulders Mr. President, and the shoulders of the inept members of your Cabinet.

In his column today, Paul Krugman asserts…

I don’t think this is a simple tale of incompetence. The reason the military wasn’t rushed in to help along the Gulf Coast is, I believe, the same reason nothing was done to stop looting after the fall of Baghdad. Flood control was neglected for the same reason our troops in Iraq didn’t get adequate armor.

At a fundamental level, I’d argue, our current leaders just aren’t serious about some of the essential functions of government. They like waging war, but they don’t like providing security, rescuing those in need or spending on preventive measures. And they never, ever ask for shared sacrifice.

In recent months there has been much talk about the a quagmire in Iraq. The quagmire is no longer in Iraq, it is here in America, in the Gulf Coast, in New Orleans.

Americans are dying because our Federal Government failed to respond in a timely manner. Americans are dying because our Federal Government failed to have rescue and recovery teams ready to move the moment the storm moved past New Orleans and other areas affected.

MORE & LINKS - http://blog.thedemocraticdaily.com/?p=411

[Hidden Stillness]

1. Amazing--Once AGAIN, the Fault is Not Bush's!

Sometimes you read these Bush quotes and you can hardly even believe that this was an actual quote said by someone. Is this cold bastard ASKING to be shot? This is just the eternal posture of the privileged rich boy, not responsible for anything, bailed out every time: "Not me; wasn't me."

I saw an aereal picture on TV at some point during all this coverage, showing New Orleans, and on the west side, where the levee held, it was completely dry, and on the east, where the cut funds, (by Bush), did not allow them to re-fortify it as ongoing maintenance, it was totally broken, floods of water poured in, and that part of the city was flooded and destroyed. Total contrast, west side dry, east side wet; which proved that if the levee system had been funded and kept up, this might have been a much smaller problem, instead of the surrealistic carnage and devastation it is now, with New Orleans itself never the same again.

[kerrygoddess]

2. I hear you...

It's all mindboggling.

[orpupilofnature57]

3. He has that ability of being angry, when embarrassment should kill him

[personman]

4. Behold, floodgate...n/t

[Divernan]

5. FEMA people at non-political appointee level & below disgusted w/Bush

for pointing the finger at them after he sent Joe Albaugh, with his equally inexperienced sidekick deputy, childhood friend and recently -fired -from- a -nothing-job buddy, Michael Brown in to gut the agency. These two drove out many of the best & brightest disaster relief specialists, slashed the budget, delayed replacing the hundreds of FEMA employees they got rid of, and diverted as much funding as possible from natural disaster relief and domestic preparedness to Haliburton and the war in Iraq. It was the same-old, same-old story as in every other federal agency touched by Bush.

So please reserve your well-justified curses and condemnation for DHS and the political appointee levels of FEMA and recognize that the FEMA civil servants have the toughest jobs in any federal agency - living under harsh conditions away from their families and homes for many months at a time.

[Imagevision]

6. Americans are dying because our Federal Government failed

I totally agree - please recommend this up!

http://downingstreetmemo.com/