Dipping his toe into disaster Slow and awkward, Bush mishandled the storm's first days.

Cnn.com ^ | 9/5/05 | Cnn

[LaMudBug]

"Was it when he said that he didn't "think anybody expected" the New Orleans levees to give way, though that very possibility had been forecast for years? "

Please pay attention to the following.

What had been forecast for years was that the storm surge from a hurricane would FLOW over the Lake Ponchtrain levees/seawall along the 20 to 25 mile lakefront that in on the north side of New Orleans. The Mississippe River is not a factor in these projections.

The flooding came from a collapse of the levee on the drainage canal that connects the pumping station to Lake Ponchtrain. This came a day after the hurricane had passed over east New Orleans and continued flowing into N.O. until the water level levelized. So, the flooding was not due to a storm surge overflowing the lakefront levee. Next time TV shows the break, look carefully and you will see a canal, not the lake.

The break in the drainage canal levee was either an engineering failure or a maintence failure resulting in that levee failing. The lake level was high due to the northward movement of the hurricane over eastern Orleans Parish. Every hurricane coming north to the Gulf Coast elevates the level of water in Lake Ponchtrain and the rivers that drain into the lake on the North shore of the lake.

What had been projected in prior years was a storm surge that would come over the lake front seawall/levees and then flow rapidly southward toward the Mississippi River filling up the below sealevel bowl that is New Orleans. The damage on the Mississippi coast was done by the storm surge of 25 to 30 feet combined with the velocity of the wind.

The force of the hurricane, Cat 1, 2, 3, etc. would have elevated the lake level and with the canal levee being sub-par or poorly maintained, the effect would have been the same. The category of the hurricane is irrevelant if the drainage canals fail due to elevated water levels.

In summary: A storm surge over the lake levees/seawall did not occur; the flooding came a day after K passed due to the failure of the drainage canal levee (engineering or maintence); the damage done by this failure does not come close to the damage and deaths that would have resulted from the projections.

All those people you saw being evacuated would be in body bags instead of Baton Rouge, Houston, etc.

Regardless of the above explanation, it was Bush's fault :>)
He arranged for the DemoRats in N.O. to poorly engineer and then fail to maintain the levee.

Have a good day, wherever you are...

[Reagan Man]

Thanks for posting those words from the President. This thread reminded me that was something he said last Friday during his first visit to the gulf coast. I had forgotten about it. Not the end of the world, but a real boner.

[Soul Seeker]

Actually, I don't think even that is true. It's clear from the conversations that have been released held between Bush and Blanco, and the fact the President begged her to evacuate and urged citizens to evacuate (unusual for Presidents) that he knew they weren't competant. His problem is that the President couldn't act outside the Constitution.

[manwiththehands]

"The most brilliant propagandist technique will yield no success unless one fundamental principle is borne in mind constantly - it must confine itself to a few points and repeat them over and over"

-Joseph Goebbels, Nazi Propogandist

"It's Bush's fault" "It's Bush's fault" "It's Bush's fault"

[TexasGreg]

Thanks for posting those words from the President. This thread reminded me that was something he said last Friday during his first visit to the gulf coast. I had forgotten about it. Not the end of the world, but a real boner.

Well ... Trent Lott's house WAS totally destroyed. Bush made the statement, saying that the entire Gulf cost would be rebuilt ... as Trent Lott's house would be rebuilt and he would enjoy sitting on the porch again. That was an ILLUSTRATION offered to make a point -- it won't just be the rich and the powerful whose houses will be rebuilt, but so also the entire gulf coast be re-built.

As usually, the Midland boy could have said it a little better.

[Reagan Man]

>>>>As usually, the Midland boy could have said it a little better.

That was my point too. I'm surprised MSM didn't try to make an issue of it.

[Recovering_Democrat]

What assclown at CNN wrote this crap?

[WOSG]

CNN would prefer:

"NO TRENT, cant rebuild your house, there are looters in New Orleans making it a 'postapocalyptic water world of New Orleans' ... sorry, we havre to rebuild THEIR homes instead."

yeah, right.

[WOSG]

"Was it his first go at addressing the crisis Wednesday, when he came across as cool to the point of uncaring?"

Bush was calm, collected and caring ... throughout...

He really shined, and the MSM doesnt even know it.

[WOSG]

"What assclown at CNN wrote this crap?"

They prefer to remain anonymous... it sounds like the scraps you can collect at DU (with obscenities removed).

[WOSG]

President George W. Bush: "We've got a lot of rebuilding to do. First, we're going to save lives and stabilize the situation. And then we're going to help these communities rebuild. The good news is -- and it's hard for some to see it now -- that out of this chaos is going to come a fantastic Gulf Coast, like it was before. Out of the rubbles of Trent Lott's house -- he's lost his entire house -- there's going to be a fantastic house. And I'm looking forward to sitting on the porch. (Laughter.)"

----

There is nothing wrong with this statement of hope and optimism in the fact of adversity. And there is nothing wrong with saying a kind word for a fellow Republican.

What the he** should he say? "I'm overwhelmed" and start weeping? Sure, that'll help (/sarc)

Anyone who criticizes the President over *this* is really scraping the bottom of the barrel.

Of course if he even hinted that we *wouldnt* rebuild, the press would rip him another one for not caring. ANd if he cares for mr XYZ it means he doesnt care for ABC. CNN and their ilk can go stuff it, I'm sick of their meanspirited hateful partisanship.

[Steve_Seattle]

"Regarding the title: Couldn't prove it by the polls. People don't believe it. The media is singing this tune for nothing."

I think most people have the common sense to realize that in a disaster of this magnitude it will take time to get to all the survivors, that there will be some confusion and some screwups, and that a once-in-a-lifetime event involving coordination of thousands of people from numerous state, local, federal, and private agencies will not go off without a hitch.

[t2buckeye]

Exactly....I can understand why President Bush would NEVEr want to talk to the media. They ALWAYS couch his words in their own context...never in the context as intended. It was obvious when reading his whole statement that he meant that the floods as an AFTERMATH of the storm surprised him. Of course, the questions about why the Mayor and Governor failed to follow their own plan will never be asked.

[Praxeologue]

There is nothing wrong with this statement of hope and optimism in the fact of adversity. And there is nothing wrong with saying a kind word for a fellow Republican.

It amazes me how many on this board accept the supposed facts in these biased articles as either facts or at least, grudgingly, Bush malaprops. Then eventually, someone like you sets out the actual facts and all is well; except that no one reads it, having already opined or never participated. Even Rush sounds bashful, weak and apologetic at times, when he should not be.

I'm going to start reading threads from the bottom up.

Thank you for the facts.

[doug from upland]

MIDI - WITH OR WITHOUT YOU

Of your bias we’re weary
I’m afraid we’re not teary
We’ll wave….bye-bye

CNN, you’ll face your fate
It’s about 12 years too late
We can live…without you

We’ll live without you…gladly, without you

For the RATS you’ve been spinning
For awhile you were winning
We can live without you

We’ll live without you…gladly, without you, you, you

We will live…we’ll live without you

We are pleased that by FOX NEWS you’re blown away
We are pleased that by FOX NEWS you’re blown away
That’s because you guys suck big
You suck big
And we’re pleased that by FOX NEWS you’re blown away
You guys suck big time

You guys suck big time
You guys suck big time

You will not be missed

You’ve been blown away
You’ve…been blown away
FOX NEWS blows you guys away
You’ve been blown…away
You’ve been blown…away

FOX NEWS blows you guys away
And we’ll all live without you
And we’ll all live without you, you, you

I am sure we’ll live
Yes, we’ll all live without you

Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha
Judy, good bye…Wolfie, good bye
We’ll try to live…without you

I think we’ll live without you
I think we’ll live without you, you, you

And I think we’ll live
Yes, we’ll all live without you

Yes, we’ll all live without you

(slight musical break)

We’ll…live without you
We’ll…live without you

Good bye, Suspender Man
Put Maggie Carlson in the can
Screw Greta and her pal, Al Hunt
For RATS they always had to front
Bill Press, good bye from all of us
Perhaps you’ll get hit by a bus…

---

[lepton]

He said Lotts house would be rebuilt. He didn't say by whom they would be rebuilt. The closest he came to saying that the government would have a part in Lotts house was saying that the government would help rebuild communities.

[ladyinred]

NO he didn't. My CNN LIES bumper sticker gets more and more true.

[Reagan Man]

>>>>The closest he came to saying that the government would have a part in Lotts house was saying that the government would help rebuild communities.

Well?

[IronMan04]

Well actually the White House confirms the President's quote about Lott's house.