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Drudge-Developing: WHITE HOUSE MULLED SEIZING RELIEF MISSION
Drudge ^

Posted on 09/08/2005 6:57:07 PM PDT by sissyjane

Edited on 09/08/2005 11:37:58 PM PDT by Admin Moderator. [history]

>> WHITE HOUSE MULLED SEIZING RELIEF MISSION // Invoke the Insurrection Act? Bush's senior advisers debated last week whether the president should seize control of the chaotic hurricane relief mission from the governor so that active-duty combat troops could be sent to enforce order... Developing

Update******

Political Issues Snarled Plans for Troop Aid

"WASHINGTON, Sept. 8 - As New Orleans descended into chaos last week and Louisiana's governor asked for 40,000 soldiers, President Bush's senior advisers debated whether the president should speed the arrival of active-duty troops by seizing control of the hurricane relief mission from the governor.

For reasons of practicality and politics, officials at the Justice Department and Pentagon, and then at the White House, decided not to urge Mr. Bush to take command of the effort.

Instead, the Washington officials decided to rely on the growing number of National Guard personnel flowing into Louisiana, who were under Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco's control. The debate was triggered as officials began to realize that Hurricane Katrina exposed a critical flaw in the national disaster response plans created after the Sept. 11 attacks. According to the administration's senior homeland security officials, the hurricane showed the failure of their plan to recognize that local police, fire and medical personnel might be incapacitated and unable to act quickly until reinforcements arrive on the scene..."

".. To seize control of the mission, Mr. Bush would have had to invoke the Insurrection Act, which allows the president in times of unrest to command active-duty forces into the states to perform law enforcement duties. But decision makers in Washington felt certain that Governor Blanco would have resisted surrendering control of the military relief mission as Bush Administration officials believe would have been required to deploy active-duty combat forces before law and order had been re-established. While troops can conduct relief missions without the legal authority of the Insurrection Act, Pentagon and military officials say that no active-duty forces could have been sent into the chaos of New Orleans on Wednesday or Thursday without confronting law-and-order challenges......."


TOPICS: Breaking News; News/Current Events; US: District of Columbia; US: Louisiana; US: Texas
KEYWORDS: blanco; hurricane; incompetence; katrina; katrinafacts; katrinafailures
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To: Ray66
Somebody else was pulling the strings with the stonewalling

I'd bet the farm on this. DNC? Clintons? Who decided to block food and water from people at the Superdome, Convention Center, and I-10 overpass so that they could use thousands of suffering people as TV props while they blame Bush? They are guilty of conspiring to commit criminal negligence that resulted in wrongful death.
161 posted on 09/08/2005 7:44:03 PM PDT by advance_copy (Stand for life, or nothing at all)
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To: Cboldt
It was the Arkansas Guard and it was on Thursday. It may have included units other than Arkansas, too. I dunno.

The info came from my governmental relations unit in an open communication to employees, and they don't joke around or engage in spreading idle rumors.

If anything, they tend to be overly tight-lipped.

162 posted on 09/08/2005 7:44:17 PM PDT by Dog Gone
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To: PISANO
If the POTUS invoked the Insurrection Act, He would be accused of invading a soverign state, breaking the POSSE COMITATUS act and breaking the law as written by not allowing the First responders in both the city and state,

They already have their Impeachment documents ready, this would have become their causis belli(sp?).

I hope these DUmmies keep it up, this is just like the Wellstone Memorial on steroids, LMAO.

163 posted on 09/08/2005 7:46:28 PM PDT by Mister Baredog ((Minuteman at heart, couch potato in reality))
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To: bnelson44

And let me just add, when the Democrats compare how this played out and ask the question "What would happen in a terrorist attack?"...they are comparing apples to oranges.

In a terrorist attack, the troops could immediately be Federalized and we wouldn't be dealing with Posse Comitatus.


164 posted on 09/08/2005 7:46:57 PM PDT by dawn53
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To: NYleatherneck

Appears to me that the media frenzy ,and dem mouthpieces, know that one , or more of theirs were in the wrong, and tried the diversion technique of blaming someone else.

Also Broomhilda is running high level interference with a request for an independent council, so this never sees the light of day, and causes the average person to see what really happens when things are turned over to those who only look out for the common good, instead of taking care of the immediate need


165 posted on 09/08/2005 7:47:01 PM PDT by patriotspride
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To: sissyjane

Yeah, we kind of already figured that out Drudge. Nice you realized it though.


166 posted on 09/08/2005 7:47:22 PM PDT by Soul Seeker (Barbour/Honore in '08)
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To: Cautor
Legally, what happened in NO was no insurrection, at least within the purview of that legal authority

Maybe not, but when a governing authority in the United States (the city and state here) make no attempt to protect the civil and constitutional rights of American citizens, do the Feds have the authority to step in to insure that those rights sre protected?

167 posted on 09/08/2005 7:47:44 PM PDT by feedback doctor (Liberals will only go to Wal-Mart for looting!)
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To: deport

"They wanted to take over my National Guard," Blanco said in an interview. "A governor has to have the final say on what's going to happen."

What an idiot!! Does she claim ownership of the corpses too?


168 posted on 09/08/2005 7:48:12 PM PDT by Gimme
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To: Fred Nerks; anglian

Many thanks. Does anglian know this person? It appears to have been forwarded to him somehow.


169 posted on 09/08/2005 7:48:36 PM PDT by Ohioan from Florida (The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.- Edmund Burke)
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To: Torie
There is a level of court between the federal district court and SCOTUS. It is called the Appellate Court.

The 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in New Orleans? The one that was evacuated and closed on Saturday? How would they possibly hear the case? How could they hear a case which they would personally be affected by? It would have been referred immediately to the SCOTUS, or if by some miracle that they did take action, it would be to sustain the injunction. No other option is possible.

But in any event, this didn't happen and I'll let the legal eagles debate it with you. I'd suggest it as a topic for discussion between experts on FindLaw or one of the many legal blogs out there. I think the answer wouldn't change, but they would know the personalities better.
170 posted on 09/08/2005 7:48:55 PM PDT by kingu (Draft Fmr Senator Fred Thompson for '08.)
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To: Shermy
It has to be part of what happened.

The President would have to invoke the insurrection act to do the necessary work immediately.

Blanco wanted to keep local control and bungled the the evacuation and relief. Her hope is that MSM and Dem spin will focus the blame on Bush and Fema and keep her out of the Center Stage Spotlight.

171 posted on 09/08/2005 7:48:56 PM PDT by Anti-Bubba182
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To: Torie
And since it appears that he only asked after the hurricane passed, rather than before

First, he made the request on Saturday that all peoples be moved out of the area. This was met with no response on the State level. Second, it is not for him to 'ask' as it is left to the State to request help. None was requested when it should have been. It was flat out ignored when it was there for the asking.

Before the fact, in my view, if Bush had the assets to deploy quickly enough, comandeered or otherwise, to get more folks out, he should have moved

Let me ask you this. Taking out the infirm, when, exactly, do you start laying blame on the citizens for not taking care of themselves?

172 posted on 09/08/2005 7:50:56 PM PDT by ShadowDancer (Stupid people make my brain sad.)
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To: deport
"In the face of fierce criticism, the White House launched a public relations counteroffensive over the weekend to deflect blame, some of which bounced to state and local officials. The effort, The New York Times reported, was being orchestrated by Bush's political director, Karl Rove, and communications director, Dan Bartlett.

So, am I mistaken that even this is considered a slam at the President???

173 posted on 09/08/2005 7:51:23 PM PDT by Arizona Carolyn
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To: Dog Gone
Coming from you I didn't take it as a rumor. Thanks for filling in those details.

Interesting that the Feds have an "in" to the interstate compacts for National Guard.

174 posted on 09/08/2005 7:51:47 PM PDT by Cboldt
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To: bnelson44
"I need everything you have got," Governor Blanco said she told Mr. Bush last Tuesday, when New Orleans flooded. In an interview, she acknowledged that she did not specify what sorts of soldiers. "Nobody told me that I had to request that. I thought that I had requested everything they had," she said. "We were living in a war zone by then."

The governor illustrated her stance when, overnight Friday, she rejected a more modest proposal for a hybrid command structure in which both the Guard and active-duty troops would be under the command of an active-duty, three-star general - but only after he had been sworn into the Louisiana Guard.

NYTimes is amazing. "illustrated her stance?" Absolutely not, it disproves the earlier comment she was ignorant of the laws.

"Illustrated" - The article becomes a puff piece for her.

Where was the Louisiana Nat'l Guard?

175 posted on 09/08/2005 7:52:15 PM PDT by Shermy
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To: Lancey Howard
??? Bush would have looked like a decisive leader and his job approval rating today would be over 65%.

Not a chance! Look at what the MSM is trying to do at every turn already! They don't want him to look like a "HERO" on anything, all they want is him gone no matter what.

176 posted on 09/08/2005 7:52:43 PM PDT by Randy Larsen (Freedom is not America's gift to man, Freedom is GOD'S gift to mankind!....G.W.Bush)
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To: Dog Gone

I have information that the National Guard was stopped outside Lousiana for eight hours while the White House attorney's negotiated with Blanco's attorneys over who would be in charge.



I don't know what happened but there are request lines to be followed before approval is given at the Fed level for these forces to be employed..

I know on Wed. evening [8/31/05] I was driving back from Louisiana and just after crossing back into Texas at Orange I met some convoys headed into La. They were rolling an maybe 5 or so miles from the state line. Then just a few miles farther west I saw a group of maybe 50+ vehicles or so at a rest stop on I-10. I don't know what they were doing, I assumed taking a break. But now you raise a question that they may have been standing down for a decision regarding chain of command....

Interesting.


177 posted on 09/08/2005 7:52:56 PM PDT by deport
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To: SouthernFreebird

I was thinking the same thing....that being said, if you're not going to do something (Blanco) then get out of the way for someone who CAN!!! (Bush)


178 posted on 09/08/2005 7:53:10 PM PDT by kcmom
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To: PISANO
There is NO DOUBT in my military mind that the MSM and the DIMS would LOVE the number of deaths to be astronomical.

I agree, they seem almost gleeful there's 25,000 body bags.

I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess they're going to be dissappointed, thankfully.

179 posted on 09/08/2005 7:53:12 PM PDT by Mister Baredog ((Minuteman at heart, couch potato in reality))
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To: sissyjane

President Bush can't win with the moonbats and their buds in the media. He would either have been too quick on the trigger or too slow. He would have sent either too many troops or not enough. He would have either gone too early to view the damage or too late.

If whatever you do is going to displease the jerks, why try to please them?


180 posted on 09/08/2005 7:53:44 PM PDT by billnaz (What part of "shall not be infringed" don't you understand?)
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