What Went Wrong? Bush Says He'll Lead Katrina Response Investigation

[bdwaygirl]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 12:20pm

"New York -WABC, September 6, 2005) - President Bush today announced he will lead the charge in the Gulf Coast. Slowly, progress is being made in the hurricane-ravaged region.

In New Orleans the main levee responsible for much of the city's flooding has been repaired and now that the breach has been plugged a pump is beginning to drain the city and pump the water back into the lake.

But as the water recedes, New Orleans Mayor Nagin says he fears as many as 10,000 people may have lost their lives."

http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/story?section=forecast&id=3417866

[brdlwyr]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 12:23pm

Maybe he will appoint Tom Cruise as Medical Director.
Updated On: 9/6/05 at 12:23 PM

[mominator]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 12:24pm

Watching the news this morning, I found it so hard to believe that some folks did not want to leave their homes. I do hope the numbers will not be that high, but any loss of life is one too many.

[WindyCityActor]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 12:36pm

Why does the phrase "fox guarding the henhouse" come to mind?

[jrb_actor]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 1:06pm

Exactly. We'll have to wait until 2050 for the FULL report on who ****ed up.

[WindyCityActor]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 1:22pm

Probably one of the best timelines from Ameriblog:

Lets hope Bush's investigation covers all of the relevant facts.

Of course the hurricane would have hit no matter who was president, but no one would imagine that knowing he had cut the funds and stopped work on the levees for the first time in 37 years...
http://tinyurl.com/cd5ws

...and knowing a cat 5 hurricane was coming and that the Gov of LA Blanko declared a state of emergency on 8/26
http://tinyurl.com/9ce2l

and Gov Blanko formally requested Fed assistance from Bush, Dept of Homeland Security on Sunday 8/28...
http://tinyurl.com/ajly7

...that anyone but Bush would have decided knowing all of that to go on Monday to have cake at McCain's B'day party...
http://tinyurl.com/88vfs

...and later that day take in a baseball game on the day of the hurricane, along with his Sec of Defense, Don Rumsfeld...
http://tinyurl.com/dmkr8

... and then the two decided to go on Tuesday, the day of the flooding, to a VJ Day event in CA and try to draw a line between WWII and his war `for what I don't know' in Iraq,....
http://tinyurl.com/e2uqz

... knowing that at that very moment there are Americans drowning due to National Guard shortages because of it.....
http://tinyurl.com/ad3xw

...and as if to add insult to injury, or a more apropos simile, to add serial necrophilia to mass manslaughter, Bush poses like he knows how to play a guitar, but he obviously can't because in the photo country star Mark Wills hadn't gotten out of the way from obviously placing Bush's fingers in position for him to appear like he knows how to play for the camera first..(fraud)...
http://tinyurl.com/dcmkn

....and despite the catastrophe occurring and nations all over the world were offering their help, Bush let his Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice begin her vacation, going on a truly obscene shoe shopping spree, and taking in a Wednesday night showing of “Spamalot!," the Monty Python musical, in NY......
http://tinyurl.com/9lwvt

.....and as a result of all of this criminal negligence, “the paperwork from Washington, allowing the troops to deploy, didn't come until Thursday”.
http://tinyurl.com/7sr5n

[Mister Matt]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 1:37pm

"President Bush today announced he will lead the charge in the Gulf Coast."

So, he's actually admitting he led nothing until now? I'm sure the entire Gulf Coast has breathed a collective sigh of relief. Or was that sound their final breath? They sound the same, don't they?

[Unknown User]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 1:40pm

For a quick gander at how some other people are viewing this situation, here's just one opinion column.
Pruden on Politics, from the Washington Times.

[Plum]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 7:02pm

Oh, only 2 paragraphs in the idiot has a factual error. No one missed an opportunity to declare martial law, because declaring martial law has been almost impossible in this country since the Civil War.

DING! You're out; try again.

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 9:22pm

martial law since the civil war? despite the 1866 decision:

1892 in idaho
1906 in san fran (following the earthquake)
1914 colorado
1941 hawaii (which wasn't even a state at the time)

are civil courts operating in nola? i defer to the law student here.

[Plum]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 9:37pm

There's a law student here? I know Tiff wants to go to law school, and brdlwyr is, well, a lawyer, but that's about it.

Anyway, I was getting my information from the Slate column below, which stated that "in 1878 Congress passed the Posse Comitatus act, which forbids the military from performing civilian law enforcement without congressional approval." Hawaii asked for, and got, martial law in 1941 just as you stated. I'm not spotting the other instances that you named, but give me a few minutes.

Anyway, why, exactly, was martial law needed as a pre-emptive measure in Louisiana? I don't mean the use of military troops- I'm talking a full-on military takeover of law enforcement, suspension of habeas corpus, the whole legal deal. In fact, martial law was never declared in Louisiana, even when things got more organized. So I'm not seeing why it's a huge strike against the governor of Louisiana that she didn't request it. She's got plenty of missteps on her resume without making up new ones.

Slate Updated On: 9/6/05 at 09:37 PM

[Plum]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 9:41pm

Okay, instance number one- Martial law was never officially declared in San Francisco after the earthquake. Not legally, anyway.

http://tinyurl.com/9sbfr

I'm having a hard time, with the others, distinguishing between requests for federal troops and actual declarations of martial law, which would require Congressional or Constitutional approval. (I think. This is all terribly confusing to skim and I know Ex Parte Milligan is involved somehow, and since Ex Parte Milligan makes the baby Jesus cry I'm going to hold off on doing the full research.) I'm going to stick with Hawaii being the only official instance, with several non-official instances (such as the ones you named) occuring, as well.

Updated On: 9/6/05 at 09:41 PM

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 10:00pm

i refuse to accept that gilligan made any babies cry.

[FindingNamo]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 10:02pm

Speaking of Gilligan, may he rest in peace.

This AP report is fascinatin readin. Fascinatin:


FEMA to Fire and Rescue: Please Do NOT Send Help

[papalovesmambo]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 10:08pm

"thank you for your consideration"

this is starting to sound like a bartles & james commercial.

[brdlwyr]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 10:23pm

Bush only needed to order his troops to go to New Orleans and bring food, water, medicine, and security. Citizen’s rights under the Constitution would still be protected regardless of the presence of the military.

Plum and Papa - I am not researching martial law tonight, I have no expertise in that issue and I doubt that few do.

[cudramacat]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 10:39pm

Okay, so even though I'm not a huge Bush fan I have to admit that I try to like the guy and I'm def. not a Bush basher but omg!!! I am so mad at what he hasn't done. He should have had troups down there asap...not a week after the hurricane happened. I know mobilizing everyone and everything takes time but I know they can do it in less than a week! ggrr! Okay, ya'll, I just had to let that out. Anyway, I'm finished with my rant for now. goodnight!

[brdlwyr]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 10:46pm

(future voter)

[Yawper]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 11:26pm

The legislation allowing the Federal Government to send Federal troops to support state law enforcement (Militia Act of 1792) specifies:

"it shall be lawful for the President of the United States, on application of the legislature of such state, or of the executive (when the legislature cannot be convened) to call forth such number of the militia of any other state or states, as may be applied for, or as he may judge sufficient..."

I think some of you don't realize the window of opportunity you might nudge open by the nature of your demands for Federal response (if those in DC are as truly evil as you contend).

For the status of the current situation -

What Is Martial Law? And Is New Orleans Under It?

[Plum]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 11:33pm

As that Slate article (which I also linked to) said, requesting federal troops is not the same as declaring martial law. The troops are doing humanitarian work, not taking over completely for nonfunctional civil law enforcement. The Louisiana police officers are obviously still at work.

[brdlwyr]

Posted: 9/6/05 at 11:37pm

not evil, just a President who failed his people.

[Unknown User]

Posted: 9/7/05 at 11:56am

A very succinct and to the point commentary on the investigation. Unfortunately, the Times, at this point, gets dismissed out of hand by many people as a biased perspective.
NYTimes editorial.

[amasis]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 1:32am

Pelosi, speaking at a news conference, said Brown had "absolutely no credentials" when Bush picked him to run FEMA.

She related that she urged Bush at the White House on Tuesday to fire Brown.

"He said, 'Why would I do that?'" Pelosi said.

"I said because of all that went wrong, of all that didn't go right last week.' And he said 'What didn't go right?'"


Bush In Denial

[Unknown User]

Posted: 9/8/05 at 1:37am

Inconceivably, jaw-droppingly, maddeningly insane.