Posted on 12/03/2005 5:40:31 AM PST by abb
E-mails detail effort to ensure feds took blame for slow response Saturday, December 03, 2005 By Jan Moller Capital bureau
BATON ROUGE -- Gov. Kathleen Blanco and the Bush administration were locked in a pitched political battle to shape public opinion about the response to Hurricane Katrina at the same time they were trying to manage the rescue operation, documents released late Friday by the governor's office show.
E-mails turned over by the state to the congressional committees investigating the hurricane response show that the governor's senior staff was deeply involved in trying to preserve the governor's political standing and make sure that the White House was blamed for the slow pace of the initial response.
"We need to keep working to get our national surrogates to explain the facts -- that the federal response was anemic and had been shortchanged by budget cuts and avoiding responsibilities like protecting Louisiana levees and wetlands," Chief of Staff Andy Kopplin wrote to senior staff on the morning of Sept. 4, six days after Katrina made landfall.
At the same time, however, the governor's staff was sensitive to any notion that the federal government was taking control of the response from state officials.
(Excerpt) Read more at nola.com ...
Bush went on vacation in August... the MSM took over and his presidency never came back.
No. screw up everything, then spend what little available time you have in pointing fingers and strategizing the political consequences instead of responding to the needs of the victims.
Hello, senator? Where are you senator?
"Hello, senator? Where are you senator?"
Very busy standing in front of congress in an effort to get more federal money, of course!
One of the deceits of the internet is that you never know who you are preaching to.
Great response, huh? While the other states were actively involved in helping their citizens, Blanco's response was to stand on a street corner, yelling, "it's all their fault."
I said it before and I'll say it again; normal people don't react like paranoid nutcases...... unless they have something to hide. Either Blanco has managed to hire a staff made up of paranoids, or they were scared to death that the arrival of the Feds without strict oversight and control from Blanco's office would lead to something embarrassing being discovered. That embarrassment is most likely massive corruption and embezzlement by LA pols. The phony "police who don't exist" on the NO payroll is probably the tip of the iceberg of embezzlement of federal funds that has been going on for years down there. There was more than just incompetence at work after Katrina; I'll bet you the relief efforts were screwed-up in order to obstruct the discovery of criminal activity by LA pols. People died so that these scumbags could try to hide their crimes. That's murder.
No postings on this on DU.
Anyone that is registered to post on DU it would be nice to see them explode over this.
I contend that the Democrats had a long-standing plan to do this. Louisiana was the only state along the Southern Atlantic and Gulf Coast controlled by Democrats. Sooner or later, a hurricane was bound to hit. They built a plan to discredit the Bush Administration, and when Katrina hit, they swung into action.
We now have the proof of their execution, one can only hope that the evidence for the conspiracy will come to light as well.
Doesn't matter! Blankhead still has a better than even chance of winning re-election here. Thanks for the encouragement folks, but were doomed!
See post # 13.
"Only 19% Want To Re-elect Blanco"
That was from a post here just four days ago.
You say: "Doesn't matter! Blankhead still has a better than even chance of winning re-election here. Thanks for the encouragement folks, but were doomed!"
What are we to believe?
Bush got hit with a triple whammy-----not only the gross incompetence of Blancko and Nagin and their CYA politics-------then Michael Brown and FEMA's inability to cope kicked in, and also came back to bite.
Even the RINO who lost the NJ race for Governor blamed his loss on Bush/Katrina.
Bush will also be blamed for any midterm losses.
Unfairly, Bush gets the back of the hand all around.
Fema does what the governor wants. The governor makes all the calls for her state not fema.
Blanco blocked out of state doctors, out of state vets, blocked florida national guard help, didn't evacuate, blocked rapid response firefighting teams.
Her staff spent all the time trying to blame the feds.
Blanco makes me ill.
Nice take.
Saw Nagin on network news the other night (in a $1500 suit) trying to explain his failures.....and the famous scene of NO school buses underwater.
He's so arrogant. As if anything he says will fly.
Wonder how much Nagin and Blanco are swilling up in federal funds from secret interests they hold in companies doing cleanup?
Time for the pajamahedeen to get this out. You won't find the major broadcast anchors discussing it.
"Wonder how much Nagin and Blanco are swilling up in federal funds from secret interests they hold in companies doing cleanup?"
My guess, a load full. Blanko admits politicians and their cohorts are getting contracts but she sees no problem with this. Because "they are citizens first" and deserve a piece of the action. These people sold their souls to the devil a long time ago.
As predicted, the truth has come out in the MSM. I hope this keeps up.
Spinning while peoples lives are at stake is totally unethical, beyond the pale and should be crime. This staffer should be under indictment along with the entire LA gaggle.
Interestingly enough, though, it DIDN'T work in Louisiana.
Blank-o's re-elect numbers are 19% yes/57% no.
Louisianans know what happened and who was responsible.
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