Get Off His Back (Updated)[Must Read- Ben Stein]

The American Prowler ^ | 9/2/2005 | Ben Stein

[mewzilla]

Is there any problem in the world that is not Mr. Bush's fault, or have we reverted to a belief in a sort of witchcraft where we credit a mortal man with the ability to create terrifying storms and every other kind of ill wind?

Well, let's see. He hasn't been blamed for plagues of locusts yet, but I'm sure it's only a matter of time.

[Jim Noble]

Although I would feel much better having the DOD managing the guard than the political hacks over at DHS. Any organization that thinks they provide safety by strip searching old ladies and putting 1 year old babies on the No Fly List does not strike me as a serious organization

What a difference in N.O. after DOD started working!

DHS and FEMA were paper tigers in this disaster.

YES, there are bureaucratic excuses which would hold up in court, they followed all procedures and waited obediently for the idiot Blanco to ask for help.

It's clear that there is no plan at the federal level which can be activated in a flash to evacuate a city. Yet, after 9/11, that is the most probable event requiring a Federal response which is both immediate and multistate in scope.

After a nuke which destroys local authority, or in some cases (Boston, for example) local and state authority at the same time, FEMA is going to be waiting a long time for that phone call.

Interstate resource allocation and coordination is a legitimate Federal job, and while DOD is obviously ready to act massively, competently, and effectively at a moment's notice, it is apparant that FEMA and DHS are not.

It's not George W. Bush's fault that government bureaucrats are government bureaucrats, but the next time an American city is destroyed, I think most of us will agree that he should send a general, not a lawyer.

[NewJerseyJoe]

In order for this to happen, every governor in the country would have to agree to surrender a portion of his state's sovereignty. Federal troops (by law) are forbidden from being used as sort of a "national police force." This is why, any time National Guard units are needed for national purposes, they must go through the legal process of "federalizing."

Imagine if you had an irresponsible, unqualified, and morally bad president... I don't know, let's call this hypothetical president "Bubba." Imagine if he had a force of hundreds of thousands of trained, armed soldiers available at his ready disposal, to execute his every whim, with no legal restrictions in place. This is what the Posse Comitatus Act (1878) prevents, and why the Stafford Act clearly defines that the first-responder responsibility must lie with the STATE governments. President Bush offered assistance to Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama TWO DAYS BEFORE LANDFALL. Governoress Blanco declined, and Mayor Nagin the Chickenhearted went to Baton Rouge instead of following New Orleans' own disaster plan and getting those schoolbuses rolling.

And now for the Big Irony. If President Bush had, in fact, done exactly what all the liberals are crying about.... there would have been dissenters within his own administration, the matter would immediately have been brought before the Supreme Court, and Bush most likely would have been impeached (and probably rightfully so).

[Lucky2]

The voice of truth and reason, Ben Stein. I can't agree more with this entire article.

[podkane]

The mayor can't but the Governor can, and she refused to call out the Guard even when the PRESIDENT ASKED HER TO.

Turns out she did ask him - Aug. 27... but even if she hadn't, the POTUS has the authority to send the NG without governors' permission - he did so immediately after 911...

GWB had an excellent plan in place by last year... go to the DHS website:

http://www.dhs.gov/interweb/assetlibrary/NRPbaseplan.pdf

problem was, it wasn't executed. Bush's advisers should step aside, and let Bush's natural leadership shine - he can fire the head of FEMA, who shouldn't have to wait on inept local politicians when a monumental disaster is about to occur. Using the obvious (i.e., the LA authorities were not up to the task) as an excuse for not taking charge himself, makes him look weak. Taking charge of chaotic situations that overwhelm state and local authorities is FEMA's whole reason for exisiting. To outsiders, it puts the admin. down on the level of Nagin or Blanco - just more politicians finger pointing.

[Cedar]

Okay, now once again I'm confused.

There are other freepers saying that the President STILL would have to wait to be asked by the Governor before sending forces in. Some threads show that the Gov. only asked for money to help with disaster relief after the storm.

[Jim_Curtis]

What church does Rev. Al Sharpton belong to that believes in passing blame and singling out people by race for opprobrium and hate?

Like no church I've ever seen as demonstrated by the baptism of Tawana Brawley.

[podkane]

Okay, now once again I'm confused.

There are other freepers saying that the President STILL would have to wait to be asked by the Governor before sending forces in. Some threads show that the Gov. only asked for money to help with disaster relief after the storm.

Normally, the feds do defer to the governors, but in extraordinary cases, like 9-11, the POTUS can act directly (and did in that case).

I do not like the way this story is being played out. The admin. PR people think that pinning the blame on inept LA politicians is somehow going to make GWB look better - they are mistaken. People will not go into the details, they want to see the President in charge. The tools were there to take action - and still are, because this disaster is far from over.

The admin had acknowledged this early enough..

http://www.whitehouse.gov/news/releases/2005/08/20050827-1.html

..on the day after Blanco had declared a state of emergency (MSM media appeared to be saying otherwise, but Blanco's letter dated Aug. 27th to the WH is public record...)

..but even Blanco did nothing, the WH had the authority to act - and in this case, FEMA really dropped the ball. GWB himself said the response was unacceptable - if that had been MY employee, he would have been fired.

..seems the president's advisers have gotten very timid in the second term, and it isn't serving GWB well

[Ronaldus Magnus]

Dr. Ben Stein should be nominated to the Chairmanship of the Federal Reserve.

[Cedar]

Thanks for your reply. I've pinged you to another thread where much discussion of this took place earlier.

[konaice]

It's clear that there is no plan at the federal level which can be activated in a flash to evacuate a city. Yet, after 9/11, that is the most probable event requiring a Federal response which is both immediate and multistate in scope.

After a nuke which destroys local authority, or in some cases (Boston, for example) local and state authority at the same time, FEMA is going to be waiting a long time for that phone call.

I think that 9/11 taught that it is impossible to make a snap evacuation of a large city, and no rational planner considers this feasible anymore.
That being said, N.O. did have time to do much more than they did. The buses!. They had days of warning, but people ignored them.

I suspect that the next time a mass evac order is given the roads will be clogged for 100 miles. Until people become complacent again.

[Checkers]

Win Ben Stein's Wisdom

[konaice]

Turns out she did ask him - Aug. 27... but even if she hadn't, the POTUS has the authority to send the NG without governors' permission - he did so immediately after 911...

You better check your facts. First:9/11 was clearly an ATTACK which falls directly under the responsibility of the United States.

Katrina was a natural disaster, and would not have required troops beyond what Louisiana's own N.G. troops if the people had cooperated, and if the criminal element didn't decide to take over. You would never see this scene in NYC, Seattle, Minneapolis, San Diego or Kansas City.

Second: The timeline is THIS:

SUNDAY, AUGUST 28 Morning...
By 8:00 AM, Katrina has been upgraded to a category 5 hurricane and is headed straight for New Orleans. This is what finally precipitated the mandatory evacuation order issued at 9:00 AM:
The Superdome opens at 8:00 AM and begins to take people in.
In the face of a catastrophic Hurricane Katrina, a mandatory evacuation was ordered Sunday for New Orleans by Mayor Ray Nagin.
Gov. Kathleen Blanco, standing beside the mayor at a news conference, said President Bush called and personally appealed for a mandatory evacuation for the low-lying city, which is prone to flooding.

So you see, she had to be prompted into action by Bush. She still did not ask for Federal troops at that time. She didn't call for federal troops from other states till WEDNESDAY AFTER the storm, and she simply called on the neighboring states thru the Interstate Compact set up by the gulf states for this. It wasn't till THURSDAY that she finally asked Bush for federal troops.

More information on this time line is here.

[LisaMalia]

I'm emailing this link to all in my address book.

What I love most about Ben Stein is, he can take all the thoughts swirling around in my head, and have the gift that I don't to put them into words.

Thanks, Ben.

[konaice]

There are other freepers saying that the President STILL would have to wait to be asked by the Governor before sending forces in. Some threads show that the Gov. only asked for money to help with disaster relief after the storm.

podkane has his facts wrong, he has not followed the time line, and is an appologist for the Democratic machine running Louisiana. Google katrina timeline, and you will have 211,000 hits to set the record straight.

[Cedar]

Thanks.

[Aquahawk]

I pointed out in a reply yesterday New Orleans had the money to fix the levees. They spent it on PORK projects. A new basketball arena, a new vintage trolley car system and a new convention center expansion. The City of New Orleans spent 673 million dollars over the last 10 years, way more than the 147 million that was need to complete the current levee project. The State and City officials did not care about the levees enough to fix them. Now, why is it the responsibilty of the Federal Government aka American Taxpayers to fix the levees of New Orleans when they had the money at their disposal?

[podkane]

Look, I don't want our president getting into the petty blame game. I don't care about the LA politicos, he's the leader when a disaster of this magnitude strikes. And right now, he's surrounded by incompetents. He needs to fire a couple of people, and he'll be back to close to 90% approval rating, instead of an anemic 46%. He needs to take charge...

If the LA gov accepted NG from New Mexico before the storm, why was the approval not forthcoming from D.C. until Thursday? Sounds like bureaucracy in LA and the federal government - and the latter is under the control of the President:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-5253757,00.html

But if you guys insist on the president acting on the level of the LA governor, then I guess you're happy... I want to see the 9-11 hero and unifier..

[konaice]

Look, I don't want our president getting into the petty blame game.

Do you see him doing so?

No, I thought not.

The ones pointing the fingers are the ones trying to shore up a failing Democratic machine in LA. Letting them rant on is just fine, because when the truth comes out they will go down in flames.

GWB is acting presidential, with restraint and courage. Its time for you to do the same. Stop telling him how to govern.

[Tolik]

Ben Stein Nailed It!

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