Posted on 04/25/2013 1:48:22 PM PDT by neverdem
Despite the many differences I had with former President George W. Bush on a range of public policy issues, or as he called them, "decision points," I found common ground with him in one area, simply because we decided to put aside partisanship and do something good.
Hurricane Katrina's devastation and the bungled rescue efforts are seared in the national memory. Bush's "heckuva job" remark turned into a byword for government incompetence and public distrust. The shallowness of it coming at such a terrible and low point left deep wounds that are still healing. That was what it was.
But rather than rehash all that went wrong, I want...
--snip--
George W. Bush was good as his word. He visited the Gulf states 17 times; went 13 times to New Orleans. Laura Bush made 24 trips. Bush saw that $126 billion in aid was sent to the Gulf's residents, as some members of his own party in Congress balked.
Bush put a special emphasis on rebuilding schools and universities. He didn't forget African-Americans: Bush provided $400 million to the historically black colleges, now integrated, that remain a pride, and magnet for African-American students. Laura Bush, a librarian, saw to it that thousands of books ruined by the floods were replaced. To this day, there are many local libraries with tributes devoted to her efforts.
It was a team effort. I'm glad to report the commission I served on went out-of-business in 2010. I'm also grateful and proud to report that President Bush was one of the leaders, and a very important member, of that team. Our recovery can be credited to the civility and tireless efforts of President Bush and other Americans, who united and worked together to help rebuild the Gulf and the place of my birth, New Orleans.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
ALL FOR THIS:
THEY ARE SCARED AS HELL SHOULD WE RUN SOMEONE LIKE TED CRUZ IN 2016, THEY ARE CLEARING THE WAY FOR JEB BY SUCKING UP TO THE BUSHES, THEY SEE THIS AS A CONTINGENCY PLAN IF THE DIM-O-CRAT THEY RUN 2016 BLOWS IT, AND IF IT IS BIDEN, HE WILL BLOW IT BIG TIME...
I still get furious when I even think about it. Bush was, unfortunately, a big-government sort of guy, but the job the media and the Democrats [but I repeat myself] did to smear him as racist and uncaring was shameful.
Brazile is way over-rated. I mean, has she had a job since she lost Gore's election?
The doofus noted the commission folded in 2010-—3 freeking years ago. You suppose she’s been “decidering “ whether to shoot her mouth off or not? And what do you suppose she wants now? Credibility? I’m guessing it’s a jab at Obamuzzie to get him to lift his own butt a little off the ground. Her whole life is “differences” with the real world so maybe she’ll eventually tell us what’s really on her excuseforamind/
Thanks for the link.
IIRC, yes, and they didn't know where to find the mayor of the chocolate city, Ray Nagin.
That's because there was free food there today.
It’s Texas. There was free Lone Star.
That's extremely astute.
Over my dead body!
You’re right. Bush was a terrible President in many ways, but he didn’t deserve the blame he got for Katrina.
A competent Republican President would have acted when it first became apparent that a major American city with two major seaports was flooding and descending into anarchy.
I cannot imagine Dwight Eisenhower or Ronald Reagan sitting around and waiting for a mayor or a state Governor to phone up before he called the National Guard or sent in Army units to restore order and render assistance.
Instead of taking a direct interest in the events in Louisiana Dubya allowed Michael Brown, his overmatched political appointee at FEMA, to try to handle one of the biggest hurricanes ever to strike the United States.
Have any seen his interview on oprah. She asks him about it. He sets the record straight, pretty quickly.
And the hags in the audience sat there in dumb amazement when they heard the guy defend himself and make sense.
On Thursday night President Bush spoke to the nation from my city. I am not a Republican. I did not vote for George W. Bush — in fact, I worked pretty hard against him in 2000 and 2004. But on Thursday night, after watching him speak from the heart, I could not have been prouder of the president and the plan he outlined to empower those who lost everything and to rebuild the Gulf Coast.
Bush called on every American to stand up and support the rebuilding of the region. He told us that New Orleans and the entire Gulf Coast would rise from the ruins stronger than before. He enunciated something that we all need to remember: This is America. We are not immune to tragedy here, but we are strong because of our industriousness, our ingenuity and, most important, because of our compassion for one another. We are a nation of rebuilders and a nation of givers. We do not give up in the face of tragedy, we stand up, and we reach out to help those who cannot stand up on their own. . .
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/16/AR2005091602167_pf.html
What so many low-info Americans never came to realize (or were forbidden by the “media” to learn) there’s a protocol for requesting federal assistance, regardless of the magnitude of the disaster. Just as the NYC local government had to request assistance to the state, who relayed the request to the feds, the same applied in the case of Katrina.
What the “media” have oh-so-conveniently ignored all these years is GWB was on the phone FOUR TIMES with then-LA Gov. Kathleen Blanco asking her what the feds could do for her state, and her response each time was “we haven’t yet decided.”
Then Katrina struck, Blanco rushed to every available microphone to blubber about how she got “no assistance” from the Bush Administration, while that feckless POS Ray Nagin did the same in that profanity-laced tirade...ALL WHILE THOSE G*D-DAMNED BUSES SAT IN PARKING LOTS!!!!!!!
Only after Katrina careened ashore and ripped into NOLA, did Blanco finally make the formal request. Once they were allowed to bring the aid and rescue equipment in, frankly I DO agree that “Brownie did a heckuva job” overall. WTF could he do until given the “go?”
THAT’S the part that never made the airwaves. The “media” propagated the lying narrative that Bush didn’t lift a finger to help that city.
“Just as the NYC local government had to request assistance to the state, who relayed the request to the feds”
I should’ve added... “after 9/11...”
“We have a president in name only right now.”
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Yes but we have a tyrant in reality! He exemplifies all the worst qualities that were ATTRIBUTED to George Bush, arrogance, imbecility, uncaring reaction to catastrophe, self centeredness, etc. etc.
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