Posted on 11/03/2012 10:16:09 AM PDT by monkapotamus
Natural disasters usually follow the same political trajectory: First the incumbent experiences a bounce as he tours the impacted area, shows his concern, and pledges help to his beleaguered constituents. But then reality sets in and the shortages, delays, mishaps, deaths, and devastation becomes apparent and people turn against the incumbent.
George W. Bush had his Katrina.
And now Barack Obama has his Sandy.
Last week, Obama asserted a kind of ownership of the storm by touring New Jersey in the now infamous embrace of Republican stalwart Governor Chris Christie. Now that we are all appalled by the lack of food, gas, water, heat, and the basic essentials of life throughout the storm zone, Obama’s government doesn’t look so good anymore.
Why didn’t FEMA stockpile food, water, and gasoline? We had a week’s notice to prepare for Sandy. There was no shortage of time. Did the government not realize that people needed to eat, drink, and drive?
All throughout America, we are asking these questions of our television sets as we watch the evolving story of human misery.
Meanwhile, Obama has resumed the campaign trail, pounding the opposition in the same relentless and partisan style which he used before the storm. When Obama said that voting was “the best revenge,” he threw away whatever presidentiality he displayed in touring storm damage earlier in the week.
As he entered the last week before the Congressional election of 1994, President Clinton returned to the U.S. after having presided over the signing of a peace treaty between Israel and Jordan. He called me on his return and asked where he should campaign? Which incumbent Democrats should he try to help get re-elected?
I told him he should not campaign for any of them.
“No, you don’t understand,” he explained. I just came back from the Middle East and my ratings are up ten points. Before, I would have hurt the candidates I campaigned for, but not now. Now I can help them.”
“Your ratings are up because your trip hyped your presidentiality. Now, if you start campaigning, you’ll look like a politician and your ratings will come down again. You’ll end up doing more harm than good to those you are trying to help.”
He disregarded the advice and lost both houses of Congress in the elections.
Now Obama is making the same mistake. By campaigning, particularly by using the same harsh partisan rhetoric which has characterized his campaign, Obama is dragging down his ratings and with it his chances of victory.
Particularly when we see the juxtaposition of the mounting disaster in New York and New Jersey and the President out on the campaign trail attacking his opponents, we realize that Obama is a candidate before he is president, more worried about his second term than the welfare of his constituents.
In yesterday’s polling numbers, I saw a rise in Obama’s ratings and warned that the race was far from over. Now, we see him throwing it all away and resuming his crash into a single term presidency.
I also see the hand of God in this. Our Republic has been graced by the Almighty right from the beginning. To me, the election of Lincoln is the most potent of that criteria. I feel sure that we will enjoy the beneficence of His protection in this election as well. I pray that we are worthy of it.
The problem is that he has been predicting a big Romney win for months even before the debates when nobody believed Romney could win. Now a hurricane with Obama walking around New Jersey for one hour changes everything?
The ones I referred to went home to Alabama. They were given a 31 page union packet to read and decided to go home. It was NJ, not NY.
I don’t know as he changed positions. He was warning about something he saw in the polling that could change the dynamics. An Obama surge among Indies due to the hurricane. This was just a “rally around Obama in a time of distress” thing. He has since readjusted. He now believes that the initial “rally” will evaporate as reality re the hurricane sets in, Obama moves back into campaign mode, and Indies shift their attention back to jobs and the economy. I would add that a tightening near the end of the campaign was somewhat expected. I still believe Romney wins based on a number of reasons I’ve posted on other threads. There’s no reason for people to hyperventilate. It is unwarranted and unproductive.
Turn out the vote!
Just looked at it. LI power co. gave them a 300 page union packet to read. They went home.
BTW I imagine no one has ever read that (x lawyers at $500 per hr)
I’m sure the ones you know were prepared. There are perhaps (I’m just guessing here) 20 million people directly affected so if even half were fully prepared like your cohorts (and prayers to and for them) that’s 10 million who were prepared but 10 million who were not and relying on the government.
Perhaps my statement was a bit broad but I still stand by my basic point that whenever a natural disaster happens it just seems we see the areas that are more liberal on the news for weeks if not months still not close to recovery but never seem to see the same in conservative areas.
Perhaps it’s just good ole fashioned media bias not wanting to show the damage to bring help to these areas that dare not vote conservative. Who knows? But at least here in Texas most of the areas affected in the fires last year have rebuilt and moved on. Rita pounded Beaumont much worse than Katrina even hit New Orleans but they’ve rebuilt and moved on already.
Perhaps the New York area will recover/rebuild and we won’t be seeing these stories of people waiting for government assistance a year from now as I can only react to what I see happening now and not recalling seeing similar conditions in other more conservative areas affected by natural disasters. With situations such as the relief workers turned away by local unions (again enabled by how those in the affected regions have voted) it may be hard to rebuild.
Again prayers to your friends and family affected by this storm.
ITS not over till the fat man bends over and assumes “the Position”..
with his pants down begging for the gift that keeps on giving..
With Ann Coulter painting a target on his ass..
What can Obama DO but take a shot..
**Note: one hopes that one day this will all be comedy..
AMEN!
LLS
Yes. Just wanted to bring attention to those whom the media leaves out, who are never media hogs, who woldn’t dream of calling for fed govt. asst. and who know how to foster relationships with their neighbors as they are always aware that the next weather event is on its way.
Event the Jerseyers who live on the ocean. They know what its power is and that they hadn’t seen the worst storm in 100 years until this week. One said, “well, we’ll see if this house is well-built”.
Another, one block from the beach, across the road, really, has a house which was built in the 1880s. It’s fabulous and large. No flood damage, as another’s, 5 blocks in had more than a foot of H2O inside during the storm.
This house had been built way up with a lattice work under the porch area. THey built tha thouse on pilings back then. They could and still can see the Atlantic. Duh!
I followed the whole thing like an obsessed person. I wasn’t working and follow it almost 24/7. I never thought President Bush did a terrible job and in fact, his handling of it was pretty good considering the magnitude. They were rescuing people the first day as soon as they could get helicopters up. They were air dropping food and water by the third day. Texas rushed in to NO with buses and evacuated them to our state and Oklahoma.
I agree that Miss. was much better prepared and handled the whole thing hundreds of times better than NO...but go figure..the people in NO are dependent on government and had dem politicians gumming up the works.
It would be interesting to go back in the FR archives and read the hourly play by play. I remember taking part in that thread. The truth lives on that thread.
Yep and Yep.
That's why there are ten utility truck from MISSOURI working a half-mile from my house (in OHIO) to replace multiple utility lines and poles that got knocked down by trees in the storm.
I live in western suburb of Cleveland. We got smashed along the lake. Winds barreling across the open waters of Lake Erie knocked down a lot of trees near me.
The last electrical is predicted to be restored by midnight Monday. Some people here in N. Ohio have had no power since Monday night.
Seven days is long time w/o power.
When I was a kid living just east of Buffalo (noted for plenty of bad winter weather) our power was only out for ~24 hr once. The rest of the time it was under ~12 hr until we were restored.
Now that I'm all grown up, I've had to put up with power out for up to 7 days.
Now I'm prepared to generate my own minimal power as required. I'm not sure what happened between the 60's and "the Future" (unmetered nuclear power et.al.).
Some of my >90% 'Rat voting neighbors were amazed that they could now get out before the city came to "save" them.
Bunch of retards.
Scary isn’t it?
Problem solving 101. And you may as well forget it when a girl solves a problem. Hatred and jealousy, obstructionism.
Well, if RR get in they’ll be a lot of work to do to see how to avoid this dependent mentality for the future.
Beyond LOL!
I mentioned in another thread that Romney has to teach people that they can take care of themselves and how to work with their neighbors when they need help. Give them a bit of Mormon prep skills.
That's funny and sad. So many people have no idea how to do anything. When I was a kid, most of the dads either had been in WWII or worked in factories making war stuff for the other dads to use. Everyone's dad could do everything, it seemed. It's a different world now.
A make believe story. But I know some people like this.
Neighbor: "Hey, RWA! A tree fell across my driveway. No one can come to cut it for at least three days? How am I going to get to work?"
RWA: "I'll get my chainsaw and it'll be good enough in 15 minutes."
Neighbor: "You've got a chain saw?? Wow! Aren't those things dangerous? Is that legal? Don't you have to have a license or something to buy one of them?"
RWA: "Shh! Don't let the guy who lives next to me hear you talking like that. He works for the gummint."
Neighbor: "But won't he hear the noise?"
RWA: "Oh, he won't know what it is."
Neighbor: "I'm hearing all this stuff about looting. Some people are actually buying guns!!
RWA: "Yeah, imagine that.
Bammy made me a better marksman.
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