Posted on 05/19/2004 3:17:54 PM PDT by stillnoprotestsagainstmuslims
Families Lash Out at Giuliani at Hearing
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By MICHAEL WEISSENSTEIN, Associated Press Writer
NEW YORK - Outraged relatives of World Trade Center victims heckled former Mayor Rudolph Giuliani (news - web sites) on Wednesday as their hopes that he would be grilled by the Sept. 11 commission faded in the face of gentle questioning and effusive praise from panel members. "My son was murdered because of your incompetence!" shouted Sally Regenhard, whose firefighter son died in the trade center. Seated three rows behind Giuliani, she jabbed her finger at the former mayor and waved a sign that read "Fiction" as he gave the city's emergency response a glowing review.
Giuliani finished his testimony and abruptly left the auditorium minutes later, leaving many family members upset that they received few answers. Monica Gabrielle, who lost her husband, Richard, called it a "lost opportunity."
"This was not a time for Rudy Giuliani to talk about all the great things he did on 9/11," she said. "He can save that for his talking tours. He should have told us what went wrong and what we should do now."
The acrimonious hearing brought together the mayor, who became a symbol of heroism for his steady response to the attack, and the activist relatives who have become a voice of dissent over his administration's emergency planning and response.
Their complaints have been supported by a growing mass of critical findings on gaps in command, control and communications among New York's agencies in charge of emergency response.
The anger directed at Giuliani came on the second and final day of hearings in New York by the Sept. 11 commission, created by Congress last year to investigate the attacks and advise the country on ways to avoid future attacks. The hearings resume in Washington on June 8-9 and the final report is due July 26.
The commission released two reports that mark the most comprehensive probe to date of New York's response on Sept 11. The findings detailed a list of failings including poor communication, gulfs in cooperation between police and firefighters and grave deficiencies in the city's 911 emergency telephone network.
The report led to an aggressive interrogation of Giuliani's top fire, police and emergency management officials Tuesday, with Republican appointee John F. Lehman, a former Navy secretary under President Reagan, calling the failings "a scandal" and "not worthy of the Boy Scouts."
Ex-fire commissioner Thomas Von Essen later called Lehman's comments "outrageous" and "despicable."
The harsh questioning of Giuliani's former team was a sharp contrast to the universal praise that commission members heaped on the former mayor Wednesday. His positive assessment of such hotly debated topics as the 911 phone system and gaps in fire and police communications went virtually unchallenged.
"New York City, on that terrible day, in a sense was blessed because it had you as leader," said commission chairman and former New Jersey Gov. Thomas Kean. "It had somebody who was a great, great leader to take charge of a terrible, terrible event. You also had, as you've told us, some of the best people in the country to call on who worked for you and worked for the city."
Family members called the Giuliani questioning weak.
"A lot of these questions that the public has may die with this commission," said Patricia Casazza, whose husband died as the offices of Cantor Fitzgerald filled with smoke.
Giuliani began his testimony Wednesday with a call to focus on the nation's true enemies and not criticize each other.
"Our enemy is not each other but the terrorists who attacked us, murdered our loved ones and continue to offer a threat to our security, safety and survival," Giuliani said to applause.
Later, Giuliani was chastised by members of the public. A longtime city gadfly berated him and the commission, yelling, "Three thousand people murdered does not mean leadership!" He and another person were hustled out of the room.
Others in the audience shouted about the failure of Fire Department radios, shouting, "Talk about the radios!"
"You're simply wasting time at this point," commission head Thomas Kean told the family members.
"YOU'RE wasting time!" came the angry reply.
Giuliani began his remarks by describing a September morning that began at breakfast with two friends and quickly turned into unimaginable horror as two hijacked planes slammed into the twin towers, killing 2,749 people and rattling the city's psyche.
As Giuliani recalled watching a man leap from around the 102nd floor of the north tower, family members began to cry, clearly disturbed by the account.
The hearing was held at the New School University in Greenwich Village — about 1 1/2 miles from ground zero.
Giuliani also told the commission that warnings of a possible terrorist attack on New York contained in an Aug. 6, 2001, White House briefing paper never reached City Hall, but probably would not have changed local security precautions.
The intelligence briefing for President Bush (news - web sites) referred to evidence of federal buildings in New York possibly being cased by terrorists. It mentioned New York or the World Trade Center three times.
"If that information had been given to us, or more warnings had been given in the summer of 2001, I can't honestly tell you we'd do anything differently," said Giuliani, who has become one of the Bush administration's most vocal supporters. "We were doing at the time everything we could think of ... to protect the city."
Current Mayor Michael Bloomberg later testified that New York was recently advised by Congress that its homeland security funding for the 2004 budget year would be cut by nearly 50 percent. Thinly populated states such as Nebraska, North Dakota and Wyoming receive several times more funding per capita than New York, he said.
"This is pork-barrel politics at its worst," the mayor said. "It also, unfortunately, has the effect of aiding and abetting those who hate us and plot against us."
They want Bush impeached. They'll tear down any and all Republicans and supporters of same in their insane quest.
It's akin to Michael Berg's psychosis: Placing their sick partisanship above obvious facts and refusing to recognize who really killed their loved ones.
And they really, really want to "throw the switch" on somebody; and I believe they'd do it with great relish!
Irrespective of the fact that there are Muslim extremists out to kill all Americans? While I am sorry for her loss, she and those like her have to stop speaking as if Bush, Giuliani, Rumsfeld, and the like were in the cockpits of the hijacked planes. Yet I notice there is no blame directed at those who committed the acts, nor at the previous administration that squandered countless opportunities to confront the aggressors. There's only one possible explanation: they're part of an orchestrated Democrat agenda. How they can politicize something as horrific an event as this is--well, characteristic of the modern Democrat party.
Before I go prepare ANOTHER dinner, let me say this:
It is astounding to me that the 9/11 Commission, which couldn't show the leadership to handle hecklers, thinks the administration should have shown better leadership handling AQ terrorists.
I know, you hate to say it, but it REALLY does doesn`t it? Can you imagine if Republicans were bashing Democrats, or firemen or cops like this? Forget about it!!! This epaunut galery they got going on there, I`m truly starting to wonder if these people really did lose loved ones on 911, or even know what they are talking about. The first WTC attack, what happened? The terrorists were treated like bank robbers and thrown in jail, I mean who would have guessed that there were more terrorists out there?? Wow! As for Guliani is she kidding me?? I worked in NYC and I can plainly state as a witness that every single truck that went into the WTC basement was checked from top to bottom, the driver checked and given an id card. Why? Guliani!! The cops and firemen were absolute top notch, the most organized they ever were and totally held accountable if they screwed up. Why? Guliani. Do they honestly believe with the likes of Al Sharpton, Susan Sarandon, and Tim Robbins protesting Guliani and the cops every second of every day of his term because cops got the homeless of the street and the drugs and guns off the street, that Guliani would let the cops or firemen slip up? I know cops and firemen and they said working under Guliani was tough as hell, but because of that were they prepared enough that they saved 47,000 people out of 50,000, if not more. I would call that pretty damn good considering the suprise of the attack, the height of the buildings, and above all, considering the enormity of the attack.
I have the same reaction. The problem is that it's not just some of the relatives, but the entire "expert" 9-11 Commission is blaming Bush, the CIA, the FBI, Giuliani, the firefighters, the police, everyone, except the terrorists.
I also think I know why. If people know, that the terrorists are our real enemies, Bush will get reelected, because despite of all the latest hoopla, people still trust him, and don't trust Kerry.
If, on the other hand, people can be convinced, that it's really the fault of the people who were in charge of various things on 9-11, and Bush is the real enemy, then Kerry can ride in on a white horse, and reassure everyone, how he will fix all those problems.
I bet some of those Democrat memos had this strategy all laid out, too bad the Republicans didn't publicize the memos.
I hope the American voters will see this, for what it is, playing politics not just with a tragedy, but with our future, our very lives, and I don't mean that lightly.
Brrrrrrrrrrr
creepy but true
Most of them sound insane with their power drunkeness.
You got that right. It's all about getting Bush out of office.
I really wished I could punch some of those people. I'm kind of ashamed of myself, but honestly, they were just horrid. I know they are not representative of all New Yorkers, but I can say from the conversations I've had today as I've been out and about that New York has just about used up all the available sympathy from the rest of the country.
(Yes, I did try to explain that this was a group of activists more than they were a group of victims. To many out here in flyover country, that distinction is not made.)
Why did 911 happen and how can we prevent it from happening again?
Answer:
911 happened because terrorists became annoyed that the first time they tried to fell the WTC, it failed, and that some of their terrorist pals were thrown in jail.
911 commission recommendation:
Next time terrorists attack NYC, help them to achieve their goal(s)and let them go so they don`t get mad.
That`s all these 911 hearings are saying to me.
So you suppose they're also trying to steal some of the attention from the U.N. scandals?
Don't feel bad, you're in good company. Charles Krauthammer and Fred Barnes just got through denouncing the commission, especially the two co-chairs and their weak sister act AND the very small faction of "families" that have been calling the shots. "Held hostage" the commission is how Fred put it.
Should be the quote of the day!
..."Our enemy is not each other but the terrorists who attacked us, murdered our loved ones and continue to offer a threat to our security, safety and survival," Giuliani said to applause...
He is wrong. Utterly wrong.
People whose diapers are on the wrong end are no real threat to us.
It is the treason within.
Guiliani killed her relatives? Hmmm.. I didn't know Rudy even knew how to fly a plane.
Half vast ROFLMFAO
Yep...misdirected outrage (I hope)
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