President Bush returned to the Gulf Coast Thursday, his 14th visit since Hurricane Katrina but his first trip to New Orleans in six months. Though he talked a lot about progress, he acknowledged that one of the â??things Iâ??ve heard loud and clear is that thereâ??s a continued frustration with the slowness of federal response at times.â?Â
Continued frustration? Slowness of federal response at times? The situation there is a quagmire.
The $110 billion that has been allocated to the region shouldnâ??t be downplayed in any way; itâ??s a chunk of money. But maybe the president should sit down with state and local politicians — and not leave — until they come up with a plan as to how to better utilize the funds. Construction crews should not be working on the same block they were a year and a half ago, right after the storm hit.
Posted by Ross Stewart
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41 Comments
Well hell, the SAINTS have made a comeback. That’s the only progress the preznit could think of when asked.
And who wants to bet that NFL commissioner wanna be Condi told him about THAT?
Contractor fraud? Waste? Lack of progress in rebuilding infrastructure?
Hell, you’d think he put RUMMY in charge of Louisiana’s recovery, given the same operational mo and results he achieved in iraq.
Do we see a pattern here? Only if you dont drink the kookaide I guess….
Bushco couldnt come up with a successful plan in iraq.
“until they come up with a plan as to how to better utilize the funds”
Why do you think they could come up with such a plan in New Orleans?
…waiting for the reich side of the blog to say that the lack of recovery in N.O. is the fault of the democratic mayor and the democratic governor.
Come on, I’ve got my links all ready!
Oh and Ross….
you can fairly expect the reich wingnuts to whine about your liberal bias.
Any truth that doesnt flatter bush = liberal bias.
I’ll call Bush lack of response and withholding of funds in New Orleans for what it is: the Republican-led, ethnic cleansing of a major American city.
$677 billion for a war on a country that was of not threat to us or anyone else.
$110 billion to rebuilt an American city and region.
No wonder our kids are disillusioned – look at our priorities.
“…is the fault of the democratic mayor and the democratic governor.”
Bring it.
“…the Republican-led, ethnic cleansing of a major American city.”
That’s pretty serious charge. Even impeachable. How’s that coming?
agreed CF. They didnt even PRETEND it was anything different.
Oh, and the Rude Pundit has good commentary on the N.O. mess. He has funny stuff on top, but scroll down to his 7/23 post. This is an on going series by the rude one.
Dont click if you cant stand adult language and laughs.
http://www.rudepundit.blogspot.com/
Bush has one major goal as pResident: funnelling tax-payer money to cronies and backers.
110 billion doesn’t mean “reconstruction” to Bush . . . it means doing his job to the ones he called “his base”: raiding public funds for the haves and the have mores.
Rebuilding is slow going when you’re paying people for nothing.
(See Iraq.)
“…funnelling tax-payer money to cronies and backers.”
That’s pretty serious charge. Even impeachable. How’s that coming?
You know fleetie, it would be coming along a lot better if Joe LIEberman had not decided to cancel hearings on the gulf coast mess.
I hope that sob DOES switch parties. The Dems should take his committee away from him and install someone who isnt permanently attached to bush’s cock!
you know, the “kiss” and all…
FleetStreet–
The Dems have a ONE seat majority in the Senate (not even that really since LIEberman is technically independent).
Your POS president is safe from impeachment and you know it.
Move on to another repetitive canard. Impeachment is getting tiresome.
Fleet is a one trick pony – and it’s a damned poor trick at that.
The You People have no courage. The charges you throw out their are not true (lies). Otherwise the impeachment would have begun by now.
It’s not impeachment, Hotwood, but it’s on the right track–
http://www.hillnews.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/030107/subpoenas.html
Democrats send out first round of subpoenas
By Susan Crabtree
A House Judiciary subcommittee approved today the first in what is expected to be an avalanche of subpoenas to Bush administration officials. They will likely explore corruption and mismanagement allegations on everything from pre-war Iraq intelligence to the mishandling of the response to Hurricane Katrina.
The first round of subpoenas concern the recent controversial firings by the Bush administration of seven U.S. attorneys, some of whom were pursuing public corruption cases against Republican members of Congress.
The House Judiciary subcommittee on commercial and administrative law, chaired by Rep. Linda Sanchez (D-Calif.), approved subpoenas requiring four former U.S. attorneys to appear at a subcommittee hearing next Tuesday. The former U.S. attorneys include Carol Lam of California, David Iglesias of New Mexico, H.E. Cummins III of Arkansas, and John McKay of Washington state. The subcommittee approved the subpoenas by voice vote; no Republican lawmakers were present.
. . . .
Democrats have come to the defense of several dismissed prosecutors, in particular Lam and Cummins of Arkansas. They have noted that Lam was leading the probe of ex-Rep. Randy “Duke” Cunningham (R-Calif.), while Cummins was removed to make room for a former aide to White House senior adviser Karl Rove. Other U.S. attorneys, including those in Nevada and Arizona, were acting on corruption charges against GOP lawmakers before their resignations were requested.
More at link.
Increasingly, we see that it sucks to be you, Fleetwood.—–
What an idiot you are, Fleet. The Republicans are not going to even support a non-binding resolution against the Surge and Puke, even though many are against it. The chances of any impeachment effort succeeding are nil.
When the Republicans impeached Clinton in 1998, they knew damned well that he would not be convicted. It takes 67 votes to convict! They knew that they did not have the votes but they did it anyway to embarrass a popular President.
The Bush poll numbers are sinking to the Nixonian range, but the Republicans will not even vote to express disapproval of the war.
It would seem to me that the cowards in this matter are the Republicans.
In other words, YOU people.
Christ, Fleet, if you’re going to be a one trick pony, at least make it a good trick.
Speaking of sinking poll numbers, WS Clark, here they are.
From the NYTimes:
March 1, 2007, 6:40 pmNew Bush, Iraq Poll NumbersBy Marjorie Connelly
In the months since the Congressional elections, President Bush has lost substantial support among members of his own party, according to the latest New York Times/CBS News Poll. Mr. Bush’s approval rating dropped 13 percentage points since last fall among Republicans, 65 percent of whom now say they approve of the way he is handling his job as president, compared with 78 percent last October.
Over all, Mr. Bush’s job approval remains at one of its lowest points, with 29 percent of all Americans saying they approve of the way he is doing his job, compared with 34 percent at the end of October. Sixty-one percent disapproved, compared with 58 percent in October, within the margin of sampling error.
*****
This isn’t NEAR Nixon . . . this IS Nixon.
What’s really amazing to me is that so many RePukes still support Worst. President. Ever.
It tells you something about their ability to dissociate from reality like an insane person.
I am not sure how old you are, Capn’, but it is safe to assume that I am older than you. (Since I am older than damned near everyone.) The first presidential election I voted in was 1972. (I voted for McGovern, thank you very much)
During the Watergate era, including the impeachment hearings, there were many hardcore Republicans that continued to support Nixon DESPITE the evidence against him. Even after the tapes revealed that Nixon was clearly involved in the converup, there were still holdouts on the Right.
I clearly remember arguing impeachment with my father, who is far right wing. Even after it was known that Nixon was guilty, he still could not see the point in removing him from office.
We have the same situation today. Despite the gross incompetence of George W Bush, there are still holdouts that cannot see the point of making a change.
As I have suggested before, if Bush ate a puppy alive on national TV, he would still have supporters that would claim that he was just keeping down the population of stray dogs.
hehehe clark. You know the joke used to be that only the find of a live boy or a dead girl in his bed would lessen his support.
Looks like dead troops from iraq have the same effect.
In fact, there was a poll a while back about how many people would STILL support this preznit if he hammered to death a live kitten.
Hell, fux news would carry the story live as evidence he was protecting us from the terrorist cats amongst us.
WSC, look out; I think I’m your age, at least!
My father was also very “right wing”; one of his favorite sayings was he wasn’t a member of the John Birch Society because they were all liberals! He, however, as opposed to your father, was all for the impeachment of Nixon once the evidence began to mount (including the tapes).
He was also very, very dead set against the VietNam War, telling me in early 1963 that President Kennedy had lost his mind in following up the advisor policy originally began at the end of the Eisenhower administration, correctly forecasting that we would be still involved in that mess by the time I was draftable; he never swerved from this opinion. If he were alive today, I suspect (but of course cannot know) he would be equally opposed to the course of things in Iraq.
My Dad is still with us, VT, 91 and still right wing. He feels that everyone should support Bush because he is the President.
Of course, he didn’t think that when Bill Clinton was president, but what the hell!
My parents were ardent supporters of the Vietnam War. I was an ardent anti-war activist which led to a long period of estrangement with my parents.
My father still sends me the pro-war e-mails, but after a few set backs, he at least remembers to Snopes.com them before hitting send!
“â??things Iâ??ve heard loud and clear is that thereâ??s a continued frustration with the slowness of federal response at times.â?”
Is it just me, or has Ross lost it already?
The people of New Orleans need motivation! The trips I went on to rebuild – the people in the neighborhood did not help but certainly wanted free handouts! It was only the church members that seem to care and pitch in! The worst enemy of New Orleans are some of the people that live there and not the damage from the hurricane! Wrong priorities! Wrong ideas on responsibility! Wrong ideas on contributing to society! Wrong! Wrong! Wrong!
Shut up, Roscoe, you are just making a fool of yourself.
I’m not sure why this is considered by some to be the President’s fault. The rebuilding effort is only as good as the folks doing the reconstruction. I know some have traveled there from KS, but for the most part, they are from that general area.
Yes, it’s going slow – but perhaps some of that has to do with the regulations now in effect since so much money was stolen. Current estimates put the fraud at over 1 billion dollars. That’s a whole lot of money.
Right after Katrina, FEMA offered those cards. I said at the time it was a mistake, but it wasn’t until a few weeks later that it was determined thousands were spent on guns, liquor and titty bars in Houston.
One lady from N.O. told how she never received the money for her home because someone else used her name and address and claimed it before she had a chance. That’s a shame. In Salina a gal was trying to defraud the system over Katrina, too.
I know Nagin claims it is the fault of the governor and the Federal govt, but is it? He stated last year that over 70 percent of all new babies born in N.O. were to single moms. N.O. is a cesspool. Add the fraud to that – and I’m not sure anyone can blame anyone but the folks who steal and cheat. They have made it difficult for the truly needy to get help.
But let me ask anyone here a question….why is it the responsibility of the Federal Govt to replace what people lost in Katrina?
Does the government step in and replace EVERY home that burns down accidentally in Kansas?
If they don’t do it for all – why expect them to do it for some?
Is there some kind of rule that state N.O. is the only place that matters? Miss. was hit really hard, also, and the folks there have taken it upon themselves to rebuild. I don’t hear them bitching about the government not rebuilding quickly enough for them. I have a friend there who lost her home and her parent’s home. They finally moved back into new houses that were finally built. But they had to pay what the insurance would not pay. It took along time to rebuild since the contractors were all busy.
She never once mentioned that she blamed the President.
Why does N.O. blame the President?
Roscoe – you went to help? Good for you! A local church group also sent teams – over a period of about six months.
Why did you find the locals there did not help rebuild? Were they working other jobs? Were they caring for children? What was their reasoning for not helping?
Our ancestors came to America to find a better life. Migrations happen.
Maybe the NOLA diaspora is a reasonable result of Katrina. Right now, NOLA has about 200,000 people, ranking it much closer to Topeka in population than Wichita. It has as many people as Boise, Idaho. Its current population would rank 2nd in Nebraska or New Mexico. 3rd in Colorado. 3rd in Oklahoma. 3rd in Missouri.
NOLA no longer a major American city.According to a recent article in the Atlantic Monthly, it’s been deteriorating for a long time.
Maybe Louisianans should decide to pay for reconstruction themselves, or just encourage NOLANS to move to higher ground.
I finally found something new that Dubya is good at, besides making sure the have more’s are becoming have more and more’s. Thank you, Ross!
Dubya is the supreme master of creating quagmires.
If what happened to New Orleans had happened to Midland, Texas, Bush would have been throwing money and means at the city from day one until everything was rebuilt bigger and better than ever.
Because NOLA was/is primarily black, the Republicans and the right wing press are blaming the victims of Katrina.
Hypocrisy, thy name is Republican.
Trying to blame Bush for this is typical. Those of you who look to Federal Gov. to save you are wrong again. It is, and always has been, the city, then the county, then the state. The more local the control, the better. Of course, the Feds have the big money, contributed by the entire country and it is distributed. But for “blame”, you need to look to New Orleans and Louisiana first.
I’d have to agree with Fleet and add a caveat that “Brownie” should never have been in charge of anything!
Days after Katrina hit New Orleans, I told contacts, the fed should give homeowners regardless of value of their flooded home, $100,000 to quick claim their land.
People would take that check and move on with their life. Move elsewhere with a chance to start fresh.
Home more expensive, those people could have fought the insurance companies for a bigger payments.
My contacts thought I was nuts. I was right.
Cost of trailers and FEMA cards given to some people is more than $100,000 and nothing has been fixed or settled.
People aren’t sure they can rebuild on land in New Orleans for months. Still don’t know after flood maps have been redrawn.
New Orleans is nothing like low areas in Mississipi. Its below water level in many places. Insurance companies aren’t sure its reasonable to rebuild there.
Bush hasn’t triggered some kind of fed policy that existed right after New York had 9/11. Fed money flowing in fast as possible with local control.
Bush doesn’t like the state gov of New Orleans or the politics down there. Republicans aren’t more trustworthy with fed money. There was waste and fraud in New York under Guilani.
Amazing how life was worth thousands of dollars in New York, potential of the dead being paid out, but bodies lay in the street worthless in New Orleans.
The Fed government, state gov of Louisiana, City gov of New Orleans, FEMA in the aftermath, and insurance companies have harmed the citizens there like no tragedy in recent times.
The threat of water reflooding New Orleans is unlike being in a earthquake zone or fire danger area.
Blame is squarely on Bush because of FEMA guidance and his failure to release fed money fast enough to state control.
We have never seen what happened to New Orleans before.
Why would he go back there — another photo op? If I were a local I’d wish he would just send the right help and not waste all that money flying there.
I drove three trucks down there to N.O. The truck of food went like in thirty minutes. Some of it was to go to feed the workers repairing houses. But plunderers walked off with it laughing as they came back for three or four more loads. I make a comment that needed to let others have their turn and get – what you doing on my block whitey! This is my block! Other two trips better. Building supplies and roofing material.
No one has explained why the folks who lost homes in Katrina deserve to have them replaced when a family in Wichita that loses a home doesn’t.
What makes one person worthy and another not?
Homes burn everyday. The government doesn’t step in and replace them. If we don’t carry insurance – we’re shot outta luck.
Why the Katrina homes?
Why?
I’m glad you helped, Roscoe. That’s what being an American is all about. I sent money, but did not go in person to help.
I don’t understand when folks aren’t grateful for others helping them. That has never made sense to me.
But what you did was good. Very good. You should be proud of yourself.
Roscoe,
Criminals are a smaller percentage than real people needing help. All the time, everywhere.
Your story shows lack of security and who is responsible. FEMA, the City gov, police or sheriff, Fed officers. Local officers lost their buildings to flooding and people left town.
That is different than most tragedies. The whole safety structure broke down in every way. Hospitals lost power in New Orleans. The whole city lost power.
Incredible bad things happened to that city at one time.
Just don’t blanket everyone from New Orleans that way. People need help there.
Gee,
The difference, New Orleans had a federal levy system and it failed.
If the big ditch overflowed here somehow, the fed and state would be paying home flooded out owners.
The process broke down with quick claim buying properties. New Orleans gov offered little guidance what citizens should do. They were denied access to their properties much longer than anyone suffered in Mississippi.
Safety and helpful services continued faster in Mississippi.
Its reasonable to afford flooded out renters as well, if they would have done it properly. Its not the first time floods have happened.
Its the first time, political inaction took place. Gave people the wrong hope, FEMA trailers. That’s a terrible position to be in. Just paying renters some value to move on would have been better. Cheaper in the long run too.
The few hundreds or thousands of dollars in FEMA cards was dumb. If they had a rental contract it was worth whatever full amount they paid that year or previous years.
A lot of rental buildings there still aren’t open and probably won’t be.
Mrage – did you mean, “Quit Claim?”
Quit is the proper term, but its quick too!
New Orleans claimed to be “broke”. State of Louisiana did as well.
It’s the Federal responsibility giving tragedy dollars to local control for something like that.
Instant quick transfer of property to the gov. Apartment and home owners. Rental contracts have value if people never to get live there again.
But some part of a city government has to be working for that to happen. New Orleans gov broke down and bugged out.
Why should the President be responsible for the clean-up, or lack thereof, of NOLA? Where is the mayor, and the Governor of LA? Oh, that’s right, they are on TV having meltdowns, my bad. Though, I guess you people blame the President for everything else, why not this too?
New Orleans is in more trouble than most people realize. Much of the interstructure is vertually desroyed. Thousands of miles of roads, for example, are rapidly becoming impassable. The shortage of rental property can only get worse as the thousands of construction workers New Orleans come in to at last start rebuilding in earnest. The most telling observation is the number of locals that can stand around and watch as visiting hispanics and volenteers do the work. The claim that jobs in New Orleans is a joke. The only shortage is people willing to work. St. Bernard Parish was hit just as hard as Orleans, yet, it is rebuilding at a much faster pace. Dare we conclude that leadership, or the lack thereof is the reason.