Gustav prompts talk of altering RNC agenda

CNN ^ | Aug. 30, 2008 (updated 33 min ago) | CNN

[FocusNexus]

Sen. John McCain's campaign manager, Rick Davis, plans to meet with officials in charge of the party's convention planning in Minneapolis-St. Paul on Sunday to review the latest news on Hurricane Gustav and what their options might be and then consult with the presumptive presidential nominee to determine what changes may need to be made.

A senior McCain source said Saturday that officials are considering turning the convention into a service event, a massive telethon to raise money for the Red Cross and other agencies to help with the hurricane.

McCain had suggested to a Fox News interviewer that the convention could be suspended if it seemed that a festive gathering was inappropriate in light of the destruction the storm may bring.

The hardest decisions, like whether to cancel a day or two of the four-day gathering or to or condense days, will be made at the last second, GOP officials said. But the logistics of those decisions are being discussed.

[FocusNexus]

They are clearly considering various possibilities, which is smart. But they clearly have NOT made a decision to either cancel, suspend the convention, or to turn it into a telethon. Some posts reported that they WILL do that, which is clearly NOT the case.

They are considering options, to make decisions last minute, based on the actual situation.

[Arthur Wildfire! March]

A good military leader makes contingency plans. So does a good commander-in-chief. Wise heads getting together I think. Fregards ....

[Names Ash Housewares]

A hybrid solution would work.
Attend to the key needs of the convention, that is also serving national needs of course, people need to know what they are voting for, with proper sensitivities and actions taken for any hurricane related events.

Country First is more then a motto.

This is a test of that conviction to the nation.

[Arthur Wildfire! March]

Not a bad idea to suggest.

I would also suggest a call for prayer. Reverends could lead it, even through internet conference if needs be.

[teletech]

Can you imagine the MSM and Obama during the RNC. They would all be down in New Orleans showing Obama with his sleeves rolled up helping sandbag the city. Headlines would read “Demoncrats help while Republicans Party” or some such nonsense.

[jwparkerjr]

To me it’s patently obvious that simply canceling or postponing the event is not an option. To do that would cost millions, if not tens of millions, of dollars, not a red cent of which would then be available to help the victims of Gustav regardless of where it ends up making landfall.

Appearances are important, but they are only one of many considerations. It is a liberal idea when someone is suffering to make others suffer too, just to make it look like you are leveling the playing field.

When the storm makes landfall the people of the area are going to need a tremendous amount of help. Nothing that is going on at the convention will affect that fact. Travel plans are made, food is purchased, hotel rooms are reserved, everything is in readiness for the event. To cancel it would be a cruel financial blow to the host city and to every business that has spent a lot of money getting ready. What is the good of having two disaster areas instead of one.

IMHO the answer to go ahead as planned, make it abundantly clear that everyone who is tending to important business at the convention prays for the storm’s victims. ANYTHING that is at the convention site, or headed that way, that could be better used in the disaster area would be shipped or diverted.

I know I will take heat for not caring about the victims of the storm, but the object of the response is to help those victims, not make others suffer too.

[alloysteel]

Whatever way the Republicans play this (suspend, postpone, cancel or just go forward) will be attacked and made to look like the Republicans “don’t care” about New Orleans.

What I would like to see is some official of the Federal Emergency Management agency, on tape, asking Mayor Nagin to “Give the command for evacuation of the city of New Orleans, now,” and see, still on tape, either Nagin REFUSING to give the order, or giving it, and make this known in every occupied quarter of New Orleans. Then there is no excuse that can be bucked back to the Bush Administration.

Nagin and then-Governor Blanco were the ones who fumbled around and refused to take responsibility for issuing the necessary evacuation orders in 2005. We are fairly sure Governor Jindal will do his part, but getting Nagin on board is like nailing Jell-O to the wall.

[Maelstorm]

Everyone should be planning for the worst and praying for the best.

[kitkat]

***Nagin and then-Governor Blanco were the ones who fumbled around and refused to take responsibility for issuing the necessary evacuation orders in 2005.***

Absolutely true! And the democrats know it and still claim it was Bush’s fault.

[jwparkerjr]

And the alternative will be the deluge of sob stories from mom and pop business owners who were destroyed when the Republicans didn’t honor their contracts and commitments. Face it, we’re damned if we do and damned if we don’t. There is some small consolation in thinking about how differently it would have been handled had Gustav hit last Monday.

[rodguy911]

Three days of telethon for red cross, two days of convention for RNC is the answer.

[edzo4]

latest from weather channel

http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid823425597/bclid877032950/bctid959746457

[Argus]

Put the entire population of the Ninth Ward in hotel rooms inland or on cruise ships now and keep them there until the storm blows over.

Without fresh footage of poor Black people stranded in the SuperDome, the driveby media won’t have anything to televise and blame the evil cruel Republicans for.

[gargoyle]

...Sounds as if the news hounds are already sniffing for bodies. Don’t get me wrong, this storm is serious. I’ve lived on the east coast 45 years. Been through a lot of them, in scouting, and volunteer rescue. Be prepared for the worst, and get prepared for the best. Ghoul-staffers will be there, to distract attention from every thing else, including the Republican convention. I hope they’re prepared for the aftermath, a hurricane or a storm of criticism...

[FocusNexus]

“When the storm makes landfall the people of the area are going to need a tremendous amount of help. Nothing that is going on at the convention will affect that fact.

IMHO the answer to go ahead as planned, make it abundantly clear that everyone who is tending to important business at the convention prays for the storm’s victims. ANYTHING that is at the convention site, or headed that way, that could be better used in the disaster area would be shipped or diverted.”

I agree with you — that would be the sensible thing to do. But there is one important consideration — the media is covering Gustav 24/7 and would not cover even important speeches, and the real purpose of the convention is to reach out to the TV audience. That’s why I was suggesting postponement or extending it a couple of days.

[mrmargaritaville]

Not if Gov. Jindall declares marshall law and uses the LA National Guard to deny them access to any areas that might get hit by the hurricane. This is a great chance for Jindall to step up and burst onto the national stage. The RNC should have video segments hourly of Jindall reporting on the preparations and how they are dealing with the situation. They can turn it into an infomercial for competent effective leadarship.

[jwparkerjr]

It's a tough call. Really tough. There's a finite limit to how much coverage the networks and other media can provide in the first few days of a storm like this. We saw that with Katrina, they were falling all over themselves trying to find something to report. First it was 10,000 or more dead, bodies were floating in the flood waters, the dome was becoming a third-world country, looters were being shot left and right, the cops were the biggest looters, the list went on and on. It would be better for everyone if the news media stayed away for several days. It's sad that our news media have reached this point in America, but they no longer have any ability to police or control themselves whatsoever! They flood the disaster area with people and they are doing no good at all. Pool coverage by a few good people, people with experience in covering disasters and some helicopter coverage would be more than sufficient. They panic. They fear someone will get something ahead of them and they simply panic. Remember the poor soul whose body was in the wheelchair on I-10 for several days and reported on over and over.

The people who are covering the convention are not the people who would be doing the storm reporting. It's two entirely different worlds.

There's only so much they can do from the storm and there's plenty of time for convention coverage. If the MSM would act even the least bit responsibly there would be plenty for both stories.

I just don't see how you can do anything that flies in the face of months and months of preparation and spending money.

I'm glad it's not my call!

[Arthur Wildfire! March]

“I hope they’re prepared for the aftermath, a hurricane or a storm of criticism...”

Right. They should also be doubly careful about no trashed flags.

The heck of it is that rats are notoriously tacky. In my bookmarked links, we have a thread with photographic evidence revealing trashed flags at the Obama Convention. If you look back in history, there was a previous DNC convention where the KKK had a festival. They’ve tried to erase that event from history.

[Arthur Wildfire! March]

Like Rummy said, you fight with the army you have. McCain is proving to be dynamic with political judo [or jujitsu-whatever].

[NorthernRight]

Would never happen. The Dems are far too self-centered and selfish to even consider such a move. If Gustav had occurred during the DNC, the Dems would have simply continued, with mere lip-service to the hurricane.

The Dems, being the liberals that they are, would never have deigned to hold a telethon or anything for the hurricane victims. They would have continued as if nothing happened. They are selfish, narcissitic and cheap. Liberals are notoriously skimpy with charity, and the Dems would have proved it.