Michael Brown has fallen on his sword for his role in the Katrina response fiasco, but was he really any worse than Homeland Security chief Michael Chertoff?
Chertoff, Brown’s boss, was as tone-deaf and clueless as Brown in talking about the unfolding crisis, on Wednesday of that week saying he was “extremely pleased” with the federal response, and at one point in an interview with an incredulous NPR radio host dismissing reports that thousands of people were stranded at the New Orleans Superdome as “anecdotal” and “rumor,” despite the fact that pictures of the appalling scene were being broadcast around the world at that moment.
Hell-o? Reality check. Is this mike working? And is this our point man for fighting terrorism?
According to a Knight Ridder report Tuesday, it was Chertoff not Brown who had the authority to order a massive federal response, and he didn’t need approval from local and state authorities to do so.
Posted by Randy Scholfield
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12 Comments
Why don’t we just hire “Baghdad Bob” the Iraqi Information officer and be done with it?
At least he was funny.
Obviously, somebody’s head had to roll, and Brown’s was the most expendable. Now Bush can say he fired the bastard responsible, and be off the hook. The buck (actually 80 billion or so of ‘em) didn’t stop in the Oval Office; it got passed to the idiot fall guy who was probably kept around for just that purpose.
I don’t think all the spin doctors in the world is going to help on this. Thank the tv news people for showing us the truth. Maybe tv isn’t that bad for children after all.
I think Rove and Bush were both off their games and as a result, the Katrina story developed before they had a chance to figure how to respond to it. The speech last night was a good one, I thought. But the question is -has Katrina provided the tipping point where the people will no longer be satisfied with carefully choreographed appearances (with no one to disagree, heaven forbid), heaps of rhetoric, and bungled follow through. We shall see, I guess.
MobileExxon stands to earn 30 billion more in profits this year coupled with 14.5 in tax savings thanks to massive Bush cuts.
If Bush cared at all about NO specifically and Americans in general, he would ask those who benefit from the disaster (huge oil companies) to help pay for it. Ditto for Iraq.
But he’s a Republican. That means taking from the poor and giving to the rich . . .
Bush has never fired anybody. He didn’t even fire Michael Brown, head of FEMA. “Brownie,” he said, “you’re doing a heck of a job.”
Bush appoints people solely on the basis of how loyal they are to him. He can’t fire anybody as long as they stay loyal, since that’s his only criterion.
Corruption and cronyism equals incompetence.
If you’re going to call for Chertoff’s head, why not the man who said he’s “responsible,” Bush himself.
Galahad,
It should be no surprise that I am going to take up your call for Bush’s impeachment.
‘Nobody could have imagined terrorists would run planes into buildings.’ We heard that in 2001 and again over the last few weeks. But now, as the 9/11 Commission’s suppressed report makes clear, there were warnings going back as far as 1998 that al Qaeda was looking to ram planes into buildings. There were also warnings that the three airports involved in the 9/11 attacks had suffered grave security lapses. This is the report, scheduled to be released in August of 2004, that the Rove Administration has kept suppressed until now.
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/14/politics/14terror.html
‘Nobody could have imagined how powerful Hurrican Katrina would be.’ But now, this morning on National Public Radio, a FEMA emergency manager specialist who is a 29-year employee, Leo Bosner, said that he and his team sent numerous email notifications of the severity of the storm to the heads of FEMA and Homeland Security. These urgent messages were ignored.
http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=4849706
In both cases, the Administration is claiming to have not known what it was responsible to have known. In both cases, we have seen the Administration obstruct, obfuscate, and lie to protect itself.
Enough is enough. I call for the impeachment of George Bush for the ‘high crime’ of dereliction of duty, and for lying to the American public to cover up his failures to act.
Ah yes,
This is why we conservatives keep trying to say to not give in to the liberals demands to fire someone.
We give an inch and you guys want it all.
Just go ahead and admit that this has nothing to do with firing incompetent leaders.
This is all about firing people Bush appointed to get to bush. You guys want Bush to resign or be impeached over this so why should it surprise me that here you are demanding more people be fired?
When somebody screws up, ‘Nathan’, it’s more important to protect them than give liberals a perceived political victory?
‘Nathan,’ we want to see all those who are culpable be punished for their lack of response. But as the person who appointed them and who bears ultimate responsibility, Bush deserves to go. Even taking into account the lowered expectations under which he’s been allowed to operate, he’s disastrously failed to protect the American people.
I hope the Democratic Congress of 2006 starts impeachment proceedings immediately upon assuming office.
You poor poverty-stricken lefties. If you think Halliburton, Exxon, etc. are getting rich over this tragedy just buy some of their stock! That’s how us Right Wing-nuts cope with the problem. Haven’t any of you heard of Supply and Demand?If you need a scapegoat so badly, look at the 60 years of graft that has spent the Levee money on Airplanes, Casinos and other pork!
Yeah, Joe, the Army Corps of Engineers can’t be trusted with ANYTHING.
So, money makes everything legitimate, Joe? Guess that makes you a whore.
“Reality is when it happpens to you”.