Chertoff is in Washington DC where the power is still on. Brown, who knows what planet he is on. The point is FEMA and the Department of HLS have huge buearacracies. They have at least one person that they can devote to watching TV. You can bet they have at least ten or twenty feeding press releases to the media from their DC headquarters. Radio communication and satellite phone from Washington DC is more reliable than local communications in New Orleans. All the more reason for someone outside the area to communicate what they see happening on TV. Looking at your other points, it seems they make the other posters point for him. Since the local officials had no reliable communications and FEMA officials were sitting outside the city waiting for a safe ride in, who are these boots on the ground? The police who had been dealing with looters and snipers for five days with little food or water themselves and little sleep. Seems like they have a little mroe on their hands than feeding intel to buearocrats.
The interview Doug from Upland and I were referring to was held in Mississippi, where Chertoff has been since Tuesday night. (remember, seawall broke Tuesday morning) And yes, he has better comm than the rest of the storm damaged area at that time. The point he was making was by Thursday morning, when we started seeing reports from the Convention Center , as opposed to the Superdome, was when he received reports on the problem, and began to deal with it. (remember, to the background of people sniping at helos, LA Govt. still not releasing authority to various National Guard groups, LA and other States, which by law are the only troups under US Law that are permitted to perform Law Enforcement within the Continental US. Posse Comutatus, remember?)
Looking at your other points, it seems they make the other posters point for him. Since the local officials had no reliable communications and FEMA officials were sitting outside the city waiting for a safe ride in, who are these boots on the ground? The police who had been dealing with looters and snipers for five days with little food or water themselves and little sleep. Seems like they have a little mroe on their hands than feeding intel to buearocrats.
Again, remember; FEMA money had been going into that state for the last 3/4 years to be spent to upgrade that communications equipment, first responders, and emergency planning. Chertoff and the Federal govt expected that to have been done. Now, with the LA Political structure having been caught with their pants down, and probably sweating the discovery that the money is not where it was supposed to be, cooperation from them is probably not going to be forthcoming. Why do you suppose every Democratic Party Politician in LA is dancing and spinning so hard and so fast? The Mayor, Governor, and Senator are sweeping madly at the tide they know is coming their way, and enlisting every Democratic Party POL they have anything on to join in. In the end, all the tide-sweeping will be as effective as you can imagine. Not So?
I wonder which part of the media they should have believed...Shep Smith saying NO dodged a bullet and all was well, or Shep Smith melting down saying the world was coming to an end?
susie