Posted on 08/29/2005 11:56:08 PM PDT by HAL9000
ARKADELPHIA -- At noon Wednesday, Doris Crews left her home on Arkadelphia's Fourth Street and drove through the town's storm-wrecked downtown and out onto Interstate 30 just so she could buy a bag of ice and make a phone call.But President Clinton's visit to see the early rebuilding stages of the tornado-shattered city turned Crews' own trip into a three-hour odyssey, most of which was spent sitting in the parking lot of a service station adjacent to a roadblock that the president's security team ordered.
Crews was one of about 30 people who pulled into Renee's SuperStop Shell after local police and state troopers kept her from proceeding north on U.S. 67 into the southern part of Arkadelphia.
The troopers, on orders from the Secret Service, detained everyone who tried to pass the roadblock: Red Cross workers trying to get back into the city, truckers trying to deliver relief goods, even the courier for the press pool covering the president, who had gone out to get a soda.
"We don't have any phone power where I live," Crews said about 3 p.m. while sitting in her car looking at the empty highway. "And I wanted to call my son's father-in-law to see if he was all right. We drove around and downtown was blocked off, so we came around this way, but it's blocked, too.
"We've been here since 1:30, and the police told me it would take about three or four hours before we could go."
Mike Caldwell, a Little Rock truck driver delivering animal feed to Arkadelphia, had been waiting for an hour at the service station, smoking cigarette after cigarette, alternating puffs with swigs of Coke.
"I followed another driver in and he said to follow him and turn where he told me to if it's not blocked off. But it was, so I turned around and tried to pick up [U.S.] 67 and come up this way," he said.
"And here I am."
Tracy Pierce was also at the truck stop, driving one truck in a U-Haul convoy donated to the relief effort by U-Haul of Arkansas. He and the other three trucks had gotten to the roadblock at about 2:30.
"I understand that the president needs security," he said. "But, man, geez. I asked the trooper what I should do and he told me, 'Just wait.' "
But not all people were angry about that.
"Hell, we get paid for sitting here," Mark Bartow, another U-Haul driver said. "True, we don't get much, but it's still getting paid."
The roadblock was all encompassing; even the news media and relief workers -- both of whom had enjoyed nearly unlimited access within the city -- were stuck at the SuperStop.
Serena Roberts, for example, had been working at the Red Cross station in Donaldson, which was also savaged by tornadoes on Saturday. She had gotten stuck at the roadblock for several hours on her way in to the Red Cross' area headquarters in Arkadelphia.
"My intention was to go to our center at the airport an pick up my Hot Springs phone book. We have some Mennonites coming in to work on the cleanup in Donaldson who I have to house. I've got some Red Cross workers coming in and I've got to house them. There are no hotel rooms available in Arkadelphia, so I was going to put them up in Hot Springs.
"But they're not going to let anyone in. It doesn't matter whether you're an FOB (Friend of Bill) or you think he's an SOB. "
If Clinton achieved nothing else with his visit, he did help stimulate at least one tiny part of the local economy: Renee's SuperStop, which had its biggest day since Saturday, when it was selling about $1,500 worth of goods every hour.
"We've made $4,208 today, and most of that's been in the last few hours since the roadblock started," said Kim Huchingson, the co-owner of the gas station next to the roadblock.
In contrast, President Bush supports disaster victims in ways that are more valuable and practical - but he stays out of the way and allows emergency crews to do their work without unnecessary interruptions.
I've seen some Leftist criticism against President Bush for declaring an emergency before Katrina struck land, and I suspect they will criticize him for not rushing to New Orleans tomorrow. We should remind them how Bill Clinton compounded the misery and suffering of the victims and interferred with emergency workers during his unnecessary visits during rescue and recovery efforts. I'm confident President Bush will pick a more appropriate time, and his tour will not hamper relief efforts.
Q Are there any plans so far to go to Florida?MR. McCLELLAN: No updates to the President's schedule. Right now, our focus continues to be on making sure that we're saving lives and focused on getting help to those who are in harm's way.
I think Bush did the right thing by declaring an Emergency before Katrina struck.
It would've been odd if he'd declared it a Major Disaster Area before the hurricane struck, but an emergency declaration is not out of the ordinary.
Thanks to HAL9000 for this gem.
Headlines From 'Hell'(carter,gas lines,hostage crisis,Malaise Speech)
Various | 8/25/05 | Me
Posted on 08/25/2005 12:48:58 PM PDT by mdittmar
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1470684/posts
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