Posted on 09/06/2005 1:49:06 PM PDT by HAL9000
Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour got a hug. Gov. Kathleen Blanco was lucky to get a hello.The friction between state and federal officials has been brewing for the past few days and bubbled to the surface with President Bush's visit to Baton Rouge on Monday.
In fact, Blanco did not learn Bush was coming to Louisiana for the second time in three days until informed by an Advocate reporter late Sunday night.
The news prompted Blanco to scrap her plans to visit Houston on Monday with former presidents Bill Clinton and George H.W. Bush, her spokeswoman, Denise Bottcher, said. Blanco asked three of her daughters to fill in for her.
Meanwhile, the governor's staff spent much of the early morning hours securing an invitation from the White House for Blanco to accompany the president and his wife, Bottcher said. Bush spokesman Scott McClellan told The Associated Press that the White House reached out to Blanco's office Sunday, but didn't hear back, and White House staff in Louisiana spoke with Blanco early Monday.
Blanco met the presidential party at Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport, carrying a letter to Bush which showed she's not budging on the issue of federalizing local law enforcement and the state's National Guard, which the president had attempted to do Friday.
"I write to ask you to work with me in developing a long-term plan for the rebuilding of the Louisiana economy," Blanco says in the letter.
From the airport, Bush and Blanco went to visit hurricane evacuees at Bethany World Prayer Center in Baker, where the two leaders kept their distance.
Later that day, Bush flew to Mississippi, where he warmly greeted Barbour.
Waves of National Guard soldiers from other states help quell widespread looting in New Orleans and evacuate thousands stranded by rising flood waters. Their arrival also prompted debate over whether Bush or Blanco should coordinate their efforts, three elected officials said.
The Bush administration on Friday asked Blanco to give the president control of local law enforcement and the Louisiana National Guard that now answer to the governor. Blanco refused.
Blanco said, when asked about the issue of federalizing state troops, that the issue involves the hurricane recovery organizational structure, not how rescuers are deployed.
Blanco said she needs flexibility to run the Louisiana National Guard.
More National Guard soldiers are needed in "Baton Rouge, Alexandria, Shreveport ... all the parishes receiving people," she said.
U.S. Rep. Richard Baker said he didn't want to do any "Monday morning quarterbacking." That includes not weighing in on whether or not Blanco should relinquish more control to the federal government, he said.
Baker said the Bush administration's goal isn't malicious, but to facilitate a more immediate response on resources, such as getting planes loaded and landed.
State and local officials last week complained that the federal help didn't come fast enough, with bipartisan criticism leveled at Bush himself.
U.S. Rep. Bobby Jindal, R-Metairie, said that during Bush's visit to New Orleans on Friday, Mayor Ray Nagin asked Bush and Blanco to hash out their differences. While on Air Force One, the president's plane, Bush and Blanco spoke privately.
"The rest of the delegation waited," Jindal said.
Later that day, Bush administration officials sent Blanco a legal memo seeking to federalize Louisiana law enforcement under the Insurrection Act, which is used to suppress civil disobedience that threatens to turn into anarchy. The act would clarify the chains of command of local, state and federal agencies with the president in charge.
Rather than cede control, Blanco on Saturday morning named James Lee Witt, who ran the Federal Emergency Management Agency under Clinton, to help run relief efforts.
In Bush's weekly radio address Saturday afternoon, he said the hurricane strained local and state capabilities, leading to people in New Orleans not getting the help they needed.
The next day, U.S. Sen. Mary Landrieu threatened to get violent.
"If one person criticizes them (local and state government) or says one more thing -- including the president of the United States -- he will hear from me," Landrieu said on the ABC's "This Week" on Sunday. "One more word about it after this show airs and I might likely have to punch him. Literally."
After Bush's visit to Baton Rouge on Monday, Landrieu said that state, local and federal officials are now essentially on the same page, working as a team.
"The governor's leadership and the president's leadership, pulling these things together is excellent," Landrieu said.
Bottcher, Blanco's spokeswoman, refused to make a copy of the memo public. Blanco's team spent much of the day detailing the events that unfolded during the weekend, provided that their names were not used.
Asked directly and on the record, Bottcher refused comment.
After Monday's meeting, Blanco said Bush is satisfied with the organizational structure. "We are partners in this effort," the governor said. "We are a team. I want to say it again. We are a team."
I guess Bush needed to have an attorney present so the dems could ask that the memo could be released, ala John Roberts and his legal advice to prior administrations.
Sarcasm aside, why aren't the news media demanding that this memo be released? Isn't it public information? Is there some kind of national security issue that makes it not available to the public? Where are the libs on this?
Go, team.
Rush has one thing on his side that the MSM doesn't.....the truth.
Did you post to me in error? My post was to the article at the top of this thread.
The answer to your question is that Feds can only be used if there is a clear violation of a federal order or law. Kennedy used federal troops on Wallace to have the black students admitted to school, for example.
Posse Comitatus is a law that prevents the use of federal troops for law enforcement.
Rush gets to 22+ million people.
MSM gets to about 28 million.
I'm hoping there's a photo to caption...I'm feeling frisky.
Somehow I picture Hillary and Blanco in a big embrace in a few days.....and Blanco telling Hillary..."We would have never had a hurricane if you were President." That's how dim Blanco is.
First it seems a president needs the governor's authority.
§ 331. Federal aid for State governments
Whenever there is an insurrections in any State against its government, the President may, upon the request of its legislature or of its governor if the legislature cannot be convened, call into Federal service such of the militia of the other States, in the number requested by that State, and use such of the armed forces, as he considers necessary to suppress the insurrection.
Then again, it seems that the president really does not need the consent of the governor:
§ 332. Use of militia and armed forces to enforce Federal authority
Whenever the President considers that unlawful obstructions, combinations, or assemblages, or rebellion against the authority of the United States, make it impracticable to enforce the laws of the United States in any State or Territory by the ordinary course of judicial proceedings, he may call into Federal service such of the militia of any State, and use such of the armed forces, as he considers necessary to enforce those laws or to suppress the rebellion.
§ 333. Interference with State and Federal law
The President, by using the militia or the armed forces, or both, or by any other means, shall take such measures as he considers necessary to suppress, in a State, any insurrection, domestic violence, unlawful combination, or conspiracy, if it—
(1) so hinders the execution of the laws of that State, and of the United States within the State, that any part or lass of its people is deprived of a right, privilege, immunity, or protection named in the Constitution and secured by law, and the constituted authorities of that State are unable, fail, or refuse to protect that right, privilege, or immunity, or to give that protection; or
(2) opposes or obstructs the execution of the laws of the United States or impedes the course of justice under those laws.
In any situation covered by clause (1), the State shall be considered to have denied the equal protection of the laws secured by the Constitution.
The administration sought unified control over all local police and state National Guard units reporting to the governor. Louisiana officials rejected the request after talks throughout the night, concerned that such a move would be comparable to a federal declaration of martial law. Some officials in the state suspected a political motive behind the request. "Quite frankly, if they'd been able to pull off taking it away from the locals, they then could have blamed everything on the locals," said the source, who does not have the authority to speak publicly.
Yeah, read my #50 post. Federal troops can be used to enforce federal authority/law.
"Hey, General...You're with Stupid."
Jesse Jackson's first order of business will be to get those busses working again to bring back their voters. They will also have absentee ballots available for those who refuse to return.
Blanco should quit and join the other b!tch in the ditch!
Thanks for the WSJ link. Basically, these lying phonies -- Nagin, Blanco and Landrieu -- have shot themselves in the foot. Too bad, huh?
Yours is a most provocative and interesting post. You are absolutely right about sales tax receipts. The question is: can Louisiana govern itself. The answer is 'No". It could not govern itself before, and now is the time to break apart the mess and put things right. This is where your provocative ideas about disolving the state are fascinating.
Pay special attention to § 333 in #50.
Neither Bush nor Blanco will ever win an election again.
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