Major Garrett new blockbuster----Salvation Army efforts at supplying the evacuees BLOCKED.

Hugh Hewitt ^ | Sept 8 2005 | Hugh Hewitt

[Dog]

The Fox News Channel's Major Garrett made another appearance on the program this evening, following up on his blockbuster story yesterday. Among other things, Garrett got confirmation --on camera-- of the Louisian State department of Homeland Security's blocking of the delivery of relief supplies to the Superdome and the Convention Center. In addition, Garrett received confirmation from senior Salvation Army officials in Washington, D.C. that the Salvation Army's efforts at supplying the evacuees were also repeatedly blocked. Radioblogger will have the transcript up later, but the key takeaway was when I asked Garrett if characterizing Louisian's preparation for the storm as "abysmal" was accurate and he confirmed that indeed it was. Read the whole thing.

I also asked Garrett why no other network is on this story. He can't offer an answer for that, event hough he points out that this isn't a hard story to get, and Fox News needn't be credited. All CNN has to do (or MSNBC or CBS) is call the Red Cross and get a camera over there.

[popdonnelly]

"Jamal Simmons is on now STILL saying that the Feds let those people wait for four days,"

Well, either Jamal doesn't know what he's talking about, or he's a liar.

[pepperhead]

Seems like he's doing better grasping reality than Laura Ingraham, at least.

Well you do have a point. It is always nice when someone is wrong sees they were wrong and comes around. Now if Laura would wake up.

[Mo1]

What has made me so angry though is that the Republicans in Congress just step out of the way when the media and the Democrats come charging. It seems the majority of them have convictions as deep as the next poll...very few leaders among them

IMHO .. I don't think they knew how to handle this all

translation .. the lost their spine again

[DrDeb]

Tom . . . President Bush (43) is the ONLY president since JFK to avoid having his job approval rating slide below 40%.

During his first term, Reagan spent A LOT of time in the mid to high 30s as did Clinton!!

In his second term, post-Iran/Contra, Reagan spent almost 2 years with job approval ratings in the 40s!

[NEVER believe anything Zogby has to say about polling!]

[tomkat]

The new city must be something very different...

.. and how could it possibly be complete w/o the sparkling new:

        ~ David H. Souter Convention Center ~

(in lieu of cash to 'his honor', one would assume)

[CharlesWayneCT]

My column this week premised that the response was about as good as you could expect. Certainly it wasn't perfect, but for a government response to a dual disaster of the highest magnitude, Getting were we did in less than a week was pretty good.

Note that politicians who WEREN'T involved but are from affected areas almost have to criticize all response as being too slow. They have no choice. When people are suffering, they don't want their representatives telling them it's as good as it can be, they want them out their doing everything they can to goad the government into giving more.

Its when politicians directly responsible for response fail and then point fingers at others that I get upset. Oh, and politicians who have nothing to do with the disaster who still feel like they should try to score political points.

And my utmost disrespect goes to people who are so stupid that they ask for the head of FEMA to be fired in the MIDDLE of the recovery for the worst disaster in our history, even though by every account things are going well NOW.

[Thombo2]

Appears the mayor and governor were trying to keep huricane victims from getting help for whatever reason.I keep thinking there may be a link between this,and the contractors who were shot while trying to cross the bridge earlier in the week.5 or 6 perps were shot and killed.They seemed very determined to keep those contractors out.Stikes me as odd

[Ursus arctos horribilis]

Read tonight, after the perps were looting and running amok with guns. Bush debated declaring an insurrection and sending in federal troops to restore order and over ride blank Blanco objections. Legal types told him it was rioting, not an armed insurrection by the general populace and federal powers did not extend to take such action for present conditions at the time.

[Txsleuth]

jeez louise---they haven't even found all of the people yet...and the power is planning for how THEY want to "fix" the city...

Can we say EXTREME MAKEOVER NEW ORLEANS....brought to you by Hurricane Katrina....

[tophat9000]

I read somewhere that the last time the Insurrection Act was used without a request from the governor was 1861.

I agree with your points in your two posts, as for the Insurrection Act in just watching what went on with Blanco and her whole demeanor on Thur/Fri makes me inclined to think Bush put the Insurrection Act on the table to Blanco that if she didn't act he would

[popdonnelly]

Question for all the dumbass Democrats - and there are so many of you: How are we supposed to help New Orleans, when the Governor keeps out the Red Cross, and the Salvation Army, and the National Guard, and the military, and won't let the Federal government take over disaster relief?

I already know what your dumbass answer is: "It's Bush's fault".

[LucyJo]

I am CONVINCED this was a plan to make Bush look bad, NOT mere incompetence. And the Rats used the most helpless members of society to try and smear the President.
======
I've thought from the beginning that the reason she had to have 24 hrs. to make the decision for mandatory evacuation was that she had to consult the Clintons. When she hired James Lee Witt, I was more convinced of it. I don't think there was a deliberate plan to cause deaths. I think the plan was to maintain control of the power. Any "collateral damage" in that pursuit is always dealt with later. They want to thwart the president's efforts in LA alright, and to cast aspersions and blame. They also want to be in charge when NO is rebuilt. I hope somebody on Capitol Hill was listening today when Rush called for an investigation of Louisiana, the Landrieu family, et al. Of course, to get anything done about the corruption down there necessitates finding people who are not corrupt to investigate and, if that can be accomplished, to hope they've got the spine to do the job.

[ohioWfan]

Thanks for the info, Deb.

Only I'm afraid poor old Tom believes the left more than he believes anyone who respects the President...... and therefore, the truth.

[mountainfolk]

I totally agree. IMO, investigating the non use of the buses, school and city, is essential for getting a handle on what has and is actually happening in La.

[popdonnelly]

"The Democratic leadership in N.O. abandoned the very constituents the put them in office."

You are exactly right, and the smart thing for those constituents to do is to never go back.

[Cboldt]

... as for the Insurrection Act in just watching what went on with Blanco and her whole demeanor on Thur/Fri makes me inclined to think Bush put the Insurrection Act on the table to Blanco that if she didn't act he would

Maybe. But she didn't, and he didn't either.

[popdonnelly]

"I know. The media is on a feeding frenzy right now."

The MSM stinks, sucks, and is full of BS. I don't buy the papers, I don't buy the magazines, and I won't watch the television news. And I don't intend to do so in the future.

[CharlesWayneCT]

It seems sad when we have to FREEP a Laura Ingraham poll.....

If you don't remember how bad the media is at reporting ANYTHING anymore, it is easy to conclude that something MUST have gone wrong.

But when you read the news all the time, and realise that every story you know something about is wrong, you realise that every story you DON'T know anything about has errors as well.

And when you read reporters clinging to their sources when other more knowledgeable sources are contradicting them (like Ann Rodgers of Pittsburgh Gazette sticking by her "FEMA stopped Red Cross" even though the HEAD OF THE RED CROSS said it was state; also her "proof" which is that FEMA won't respond, while she says it is natural that the STATE won't respond because they are too busy helping people), anyway you know that you have to dig hard to get facts out of the pontificating.

Laura today got tripped up confusing fault with imperfection. No government response will be perfect, and anybody who understands government has to realise that. FEMA could have responded better to this crisis. I could have done things better today as well. But that is not the same as saying people didn't do as well as they could, or that people should be punished for not anticipating every hazard.

[Ursus arctos horribilis]

I had to get away from the tube tonight by the time Joe, Greata, and Arron started the same mantra as the others. Angry, I was not angry, I was ballistic at the reporting. Joe Scumbag at MSNBC is now the worst of the worse.

The MSM has lost it all, they are beyond belief. I did note the Bloviator sees a peek of light from under the door, when he said the fog is beginning to lift as to what happened in NO. But that is SOP for him, he runs with the herd until emails roll in with facts to point out the error of his ways. Then he pretends he always was up to speed on the issue. Think SBVFT and recall how he hated them at first for even daring to question sKerry's honor.

[txhurl]

bttt