(rshsdepot) Pass the blame where it belongs, Mary

["Alexander D. Mitchell IV" <LNER4472_@_bcpl.net>]

> Subject: Re: (rshsdepot) Fw: here's that reference
>
> It's on Sen Landrieu's Senate website at
> http://landrieu.senate.gov/~landrieu/releases/05/2005903E12.html
>
> Also in
> http://www.sunherald.com/mld/sunherald/news/nation/12562546.htm - in the
> "A Photo Op" paragraphs.
>
*Harry and others:
A statement from Sen, Mary Landrieu is not the same as an independent 
analysis.  More accurately, it's political grandstanding.  When Amtrak made 
the offer of evacuation, FEMA was NOT in charge--Louisiana officials were.

The major reason that FEMA was forced to drag its feet is that, according to 
a Washington Post article on Sunday,
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/09/03/AR2005090301680.html 
:

"Louisiana did not reach out to a multi-state mutual aid compact for 
assistance until Wednesday [after the storm], three state and federal 
officials said. As of Saturday [six days after the storm], Blanco still had 
not declared a state of emergency, the senior Bush official said."

Let me point out that such a declaration BY THE GOVERNOR is necessary for 
certain FEMA actions to kick in.  This would be covered thoroughly in the 
first few pages of "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Governorship For Dummies", 
or the first few hours of "Governorship 101".   In some of the recent 
hurricanes, some governors declared Federal disaster areas BEFORE the 
hurricanes made landfall--for just this reason!

"The [Bush] administration sought unified control over all local police and 
state National Guard units reporting to the governor. Louisiana officials 
rejected the request after talks throughout the night, concerned that such a 
move would be comparable to a federal declaration of martial law. Some 
officials in the state suspected a political motive behind the request. 
"Quite frankly, if they'd been able to pull off taking it away from the 
locals, they then could have blamed everything on the locals," said the 
source, who does not have the authority to speak publicly.
A senior administration official said that Bush has clear legal authority to 
federalize National Guard units to quell civil disturbances under the 
Insurrection Act and will continue to try to unify the chains of command 
that are split among the president, the Louisiana governor and the New 
Orleans mayor."

This is not to defend FEMA, which has their own laundry list of stupidity to 
answer to.  But in the long-run analysis, in a disaster of this scope, it's 
safe to say that no matter what Bush did, he'd be criticized.  Stays in 
Washington?  "He doesn't care!"  Goes down and tours the area?  "He's just 
doing photo ops!"  I believe he'd be criticized if he had made the hurricane 
vanish into thin air before making landfall ("Tampering with nature!").

But I'll demand the heads of the mayor and governor first.

We're trying to offer about 100 rail commuter passenger cars for the use of 
relief workers to commute long-term to the stricken areas from areas that 
can more readily provide housing (say, Lafayette to New Orleans, or 
Pensacola to Gulfport).  Now, consider:  Who do we go to?  Does FEMA have a 
rail expert?  How do we get a waiver for COT&S?  Who pays for their 
transport from Maryland and Illinois/Wisconsin?  What if one gets torn up by 
a mob or derailment?

Things are never so simple as the media make it out to be.

Alexander D. Mitchell IV


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