I hate to break it to you Democrats, but the President does not give money for construction projects...or take it away (unless through a veto)...there was no veto.....so you are either intentionally misrepresenting the facts ....or are just ignorant of how our government is designed.

Just got the skinny from a friend who works, where else, but in DC.

In case you aren't familiar with how our government is SUPPOSED to work:
The chain of responsibility for the protection of the citizens in New
Orleans is:

1. The Mayor
2. The New Orleans director of Homeland Security (a political appointee
of the Governor who reports to the Governor)
3. The Governor
4. The Head of Homeland Security
5. The President

What did each do?

1. The mayor, with 5 days advance, waited until 2 days before he
announced a mandatory evacuation (at the behest of the President). Then he failed to provide transportation for those without transport even though he had hundreds of buses at his disposal.

2. The New Orleans director of Homeland Security failed to have any plan for a contingency that has been talked about for 50 years. Then he blames the Feds for not doing what he should have done. (So much for
political appointees)

3. The Governor, despite a declaration of disaster by the President 2 DAYS BEFORE the storm hit, failed to take advantage of the offer of Federal troops and aid until 2 DAYS AFTER the storm hit.

4. The Director of Homeland Security positioned assets in the area to be ready when the Governor called for them.

5. The President urged a mandatory evacuation, and even declared a disaster State of Emergency, freeing up millions of dollars of federal assistance, should the Governor decide to use it.

Oh and by the way, the levees that broke were the responsibility of the local landowners and the local levee board to maintain, NOT THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT.

The disaster in New Orleans is what you get after decades of corrupt (democrat) government going all the way back to Huey Long.

Funds for disaster protection and relief have been flowing into this
city for decades, and where has it gone, but into the pockets of the politicos and their friends.

Decades of socialist government in New Orleans has sapped all self reliance from the community, and made them dependent upon government for every little thing.

Political correctness and a lack of will to fight crime have created the single most corrupt police force in the country, and has permitted gang violence to flourish.

The sad thing is that there are many poor folks who have suffered and died needlessly because those that they voted into office failed them.

For those who missed item 5 (where the President's level of
accountability is discussed), it is made more clear in a New Orleans Times-Picayune article dated August 28:


NEW ORLEANS (AP) - In the face of a catastrophic Hurricane Katrina, a mandatory evacuation was ordered Sunday for New Orleans by Mayor Ray Nagin.

Acknowledging that large numbers of people, many of them stranded tourists, would be unable to leave, The city set up 10 places of last resort for people to go, including the Superdome.

The mayor called the order unprecedented and said anyone who could leave the city should. He exempted hotels from the evacuation order because airlines had already canceled all flights.

Gov. Kathleen Blanco, standing beside the mayor at a news conference, said President Bush called and personally appealed for a mandatory evacuation for the low-lying city, which is prone to flooding. (emphasis mine)

The ball was placed in Mayor Nagin's court to carry out the evacuation order. With 5-day heads-up, he had the authority to use any and all services to evacuate all residents from the city, as documented in a city emergency preparedness plan. By waiting until the last minute, and failing to make full use of resources available within city limits, Nagin and his administration messed up.

Mayor Nagin and his emergency sidekick Terry Ebbert have displayed lethal, mind boggling incompetence before, during and after Katrina.

As for Mayor Nagin, he and his profile in pathetic leadership police
chief should resign. That city's government is incompetent from one end to the other. The people of New Orleans deserve better than this crowd of clowns is capable of giving them.

If you're keeping track, these boobs let 569 buses that could have
carried 33,350 people out of New Orleans-in one trip-get ruined in the floods. Whatever plan these guys had, it was a dud. Or it probably would have been if they'd bothered to follow it.


As for all the race-baiting rhetoric and Bush-bashing coming from
prominent blacks on the left, don't expect Ray Nagin to be called out on the carpet for falling short. You want to know why? Here's why:

It's more convenient to blame a white president for what went wrong than to hold a black mayor and his administration accountable for gross negligence and failing to fully carry out an established emergency preparedness plan.

To hold Nagin and his administration accountable for dropping the ball amounts to letting loose the shouts and cries of "Racism!". It's sad, it's wrong, but it's standard operating procedure for the media and left-wing black leadership.

Some more Comments from UNREPORTED NEWS

On Friday night before the storm hit Max Mayfield of the National
Hurricane Center took the unprecedented action of calling Nagin and Blanco personally to plead with them to begin MANDATORY evacuation of NO and they said they'd take it under consideration. This was after the NOAA buoy 240 miles south had recorded 68' waves before it was destroyed.

President Bush spent Friday afternoon and evening in meetings with his advisors and administrators drafting all of the paperwork required for a state to request federal assistance (and not be in violation of the Posse Comitatus Act or having to enact the Insurgency Act).

Just before midnight Friday evening the President called Governor Blanco and pleaded with her to sign the request papers so the federal government and the military could legally begin mobilization and call up. He was told that they didn't think it necessary for the federal government to be involved yet.

After the President's final call to the governor she held meetings with her staff to discuss the political ramifications of bringing
federal forces. It was decided that if they allowed federal assistance it would make it look as if they had failed so it was agreed upon that the feds would not be invited in.

Saturday before the storm hit the President again called Blanco and Nagin requesting they please sign the papers requesting federal assistance, that they declare the state an emergency area, and begin mandatory evacuation.

After a personal plea from the President Nagin agreed to order an
evacuation, but it would not be a full mandatory evacuation, and the governor still refused to sign the papers requesting and authorizing federal action. In frustration the President declared the area a national disaster area before the state of Louisiana did so he could legally begin some advanced preparations.

Rumor has it that the President's legal advisers were looking into the ramifications of using the insurgency act to bypass the Constitutional requirement that a state request federal aid before the federal government can move into state with troops - but that had not been done since 1906 and the Constitutionality of it was called into question to use before the disaster.

Throw in that over half the federal aid of the past decade to NO for levee construction, maintenance, and repair was diverted to fund a marina and support the gambling ships.

Toss in the investigation that will look into why the emergency preparedness plan submitted to the federal government for funding and published on the city's website was never implemented and in fact may have been bogus for the purpose of gaining additional federal funding as we now learn that the organizations identified in the plan were never contacted or coordinating into any planning - though the document implies that they were.

The suffering people of NO need to be asking some hard questions as do we all, but they better start with why Blanco refused to even sign the multi-state mutual aid pack activation documents until Wednesday which further delayed the legal deployment of National Guard from adjoining states.

Or maybe ask why Nagin keeps harping that the President should have commandeered 500 Greyhound busses to help him when according to his own emergency plan and documents he claimed to have over 500 busses at his disposal to use between the local school busses and the city transportation busses - but he never raised a finger to prepare them or activate them.

This is a sad time for all of us to see that a major city has all but
been destroyed and thousands of people have died with hundreds of thousands more suffering, but it's certainly not a time for people to be pointing fingers and trying to find a bigger dog to blame for local corruption and incompetence. Pray to God for the survivors that they can start their lives anew as fast as possible and we learn from all the mistakes to avoid them in the future.

Thanks for posting that Tour de Force. It is a nice an detailed summary that should open the eyes of even the most myopic bush-haters...

FTR, some crazy goofy rap star I never even heard of before said some stupid comments. Why in the world would you think (1) the majority would even believe this, (2) would take some goofy rap star most haven't heard of seriously and (3) why would you give even an ounce of credence to this statement or this man? By continually posting that, you are giving one of the most stupid statements I've ever heard in my life exposure.

CC,

What are you doing still worrying about this thread at almost midnight! Hit the sack and recharge!

JoeA

Ok I stopped at the first part because if I continue, based on your first point, I"m sure the rest is crap...misinformed....I don't want to puke...

Maybe I'll try to come back later to see if I can stomach some more of your post, I'll try, I promise I'll try.



http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1126241495.jpg


The damn thing barely EXISTED 5 days in advance, let alone the knowledge that it was going to be a a freaking hurricane!!!!!!!

Not to mention predicting the freaking path it would take so prematurely!!!!!!

So much for your "insider information."

You guys, this is UNPRECEDENTED. THIS WHOLE DAMN SITUATION IS UNPRECEDENTED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What the hell is wrong with you people? Joe you know I love ya but C'MON!!!!!!

F@cking monday-morning quarterbacks...they have the freaking "experience" in these things, right?

Why in the world
 

How 'bout deafening silence from Lib's on the topic.

Re: Why in the world
 

I can only presume the "libs" realize that anything at this point is just speculation, innuendo, not based in fact.

IMO, this is something lost on "cons."

Reading your post, I would say that you are hardly short on confidence in your "speculation" and "innuendo" ;)

Well then you're wrong on that. I'm offering possibilities into potential inability as opposed to inaction, as well as what I do know he did (or said he did, I cannot validate that he did in fact do what he said he did, but I can validate he did say what he did, that's for the INVESTIGATION). I'm not stupid enough to know what could be done or what could not be done given the circumstances, timeframe, I'm not foolish enough to know what was within his means in such short of time, however, I'm realistic enough to know superman doesn't exist, which is what you guys collectively seem to think the "perfect scenario action is... why didn't he do the perfect scenario with the little time he had...I want blood!!!!!" crap.

Ra^ther selective in your "possibilities" explored.

Joe is right; you need some sleep. We can all argue tomorrow. :)

Oh, and don't be so dismisive towards superman. He's a sensitive lib who post here, ya know. http://www.pelicanparts.com/support/...ool_shades.gif

Selective? How do you figure? You all covered the worst case scenario. Without looking at the whole picture. You've coverd all the "selective" possibilities already ad nauseum. WTF?

And you go to sleep islands, I'm on vacation.

I'm sorry, I can't tolerate this blind, unsubstantiated lynching. If the facts indicate you're correct, I'll lynch right along with you. Until then, sorry....

Superman doesn't exist.

oooh . ..feisty and confused :D

M u s t - r e s i s t - o p p o r t u n i t y. http://www.pelicanparts.com/support/smileys/jump.gif







http://www.pelicanparts.com/support/...sleephappy.gif

I saw Joe's big long post and stopped when I saw direct contradtiction of stuff that is very well documented elsewhere as fales. In other words, point #1.

Anyone can post long lists of dumb stuff and pass it off as 'from an insider.' There's a fully annotated timeline I previously linked to and no one was able to refute a single thing in it. But subsequently, many have posted disinformation from the usual sources... boring.

Well, that's just a complete misrepresentation. And, I think you know it it.

CC- I think what you might have overlooked is that Jesse Jackson is saying the same thing. Al Sharpton is saying the same thing. In fact, every black leader & columnists I've seen interviewed (I have news going all day at work) has said the same thing. Howard Dean is saying the same thing. They're all saying, or hinting, the same thing.

Hun, remember this:

Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton equal Pat Robertson. If you think Pat Robertson's comments accurately reflect your party, then I see your point, although I do not agree. I do not think Pat Robertson speaks for your party.

Dean is a different story. Do you have a link?

It's all linked/annotated. If you have better evidence, post it.

Where is this post?

It's the timeline linked above, I've also stolen and re-hosted it:

http://www.kelleyad.com/Katrinatimeline.html