In related news, Nagin was seen disguising himself as Osama bin Laden, saying "it's gotta be safer, right?"

Yea, I saw that on Fox News with Brit Hume as well.

Talk about damning.

Yeah,

I also saw Major Garret report that on Fox News and I used an explitive out loud; almost dropped my muffin.

%$&#! Son of a #%^#@! I meant expletive. And it was a chocolate muffin.

Allow me. GOD DAMMIT! when will Gov. Blanco's ass be impeached and thrown into JAIL!

It gets worse.

Much Worse.

(via Protein Wisdom)

Macker,

For get impeachment & jail. Let's see if we can find a tree that's still standing.

Macker -- lynching is not the proper response to this. Blanco should be tarred and feathered and carried to the state line on a fence rail.

Cato:
Just so long as she is carried to the southern border, and thrown out of the state there - rail and all!

Brian: Why waste a perfectly good rail? I'm certain that others in that state deserve the same mode of transport.

The Press Secretary of the former GOP Governor of Louisiana, Mike Foster, disagrees with you.

"I am writing to express my admiration for the way Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco and those under her chain of command responded to Hurricane Katrina.

The first rescue efforts were by state agencies. The Louisiana National Guard sent helicopters in, and the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries sent in boats. The Department of Health and Hospitals created hospitals from scratch. The Department of Social Services is feeding, clothing and caring for 50,000 evacuees in shelters across the state, tracking 45,000 in out-of-state shelters and working to reunite families separated in evacuation.

If the federal response had been half this pro-active, organized and dedicated, there would have been much less suffering."

Gee. It must suck being wrong all the time. How you can manage not to put a gun to your head, is beyond me.

There's an interesting commentary thread at Captains Quarters that ties very nicely to this one (http://www.captainsquartersblog.com/mt/archives/005397.php#comments).

Of particular note is the comment of “jpstaff” who includes the following:

“the governor of that most southern of states is the de facto owner of every parish, town, and bayou fish camp, and has been since reconstruction…

“Governor Blanco will allow the city and citizens of New Orleans to disappear without a trace before she bends to the will of "them damn Yankees."

There are still substantial areas in the South where one hundred plus years of one-party rule and the attendant political in-breeding have resulted in exactly this situation. That the Governor happens to be a woman in no way mitigates. That the mayor is black only compounds the issue.

Gee. It must suck being wrong all the time.

You would know.

You needn't quote Major Garrett.

(I hate it when people report what other reporters are reporting.)

Go directly to the source. It's right here:

http://www.redcross.org/faq/0,1096,0_682_4524,00.html

The Red Cross says, directly, that Kathleen Blanco is CURRENTLY preventing the Red Cross from entering New Orleans. This is ASTOUNDING.

The Red Cross says, directly, that Kathleen Blanco PREVENTED the Red Cross from entering New Orleans BEFORE, DURING and AFTER the hurricane.

The Red Cross had food and water PREPOSITIONED and could have moved it INTO THE SUPERDOME, but was PREVENTED from doing so by the Governor of the State of Louiisiana.

The Red Cross states directly on its website that the Governor of the State of Louisiana is CONTINUING to prevent the Red Cross from giving aid to those who are currently starving to death in New Orleans.

Why is NOBODY INTERVIEWING the leader of the Red Cross and asking her these questions?

Why?

Man, I am livid.

People: The New Orleans metropolitan area had about 1.2 million residents.

80% of New Orleans was flooded. That means, unless I cannot do simple fucking math, that 20% of the New Orleans metropolitan area was NOT FLOODED.

People are IN NEW ORLEANS in areas that had little to no damage. Those people are NOT LEAVING. Those people cannot be forced to evacuate, regardless of what Mayor Moron dictates. And many of these people have stated categorically that they are NOT leaving.

The FORCED EVACUATION is a MYTH. It is an effort to get uneducated people to leave the FLOODED areas, which is good, but it means NOTHING legally, and the educated know it. They have no intention of leaving perfectly good homes to burn or be looted.

There are THOUSANDS of people who need Red Cross help in New Orleans. And it is CRIMINAL that the Red Cross is being kept OUT.

Blanco has BLOOD on her hands and should be relieved of her responsibilities before more people die.

Most thoughtfull folks, even GOP Leaders like Frist, recognize that there was a failure at each level of government.

Your incessent defense of POTUS and redirection of attacks at Blanco and to a lessor degree, Nagin, seem stikingly partisan, and dismissable as such. You indict FEMA, but they are directly answerable to the President.

You guys are better than that, really. There's plenty of blame, enormous amounts, and not only do all levels of government share in this shame, we all, as Americans who can let the cancer of poverty and racism fester -- ignored -- are also to "blame."

There are spectacular stories of courage and heroism out there, also to be ignored unless you simply stop, shut up, and resist the natural urge to use tragedy to somehow "prove" you were right and your ideological opponents were wrong all along.

I'm just as guilty of this. Which is why I shake my head when I agree with your stance, shared by Pelosi, that FEMA Director Brown must go -- yet you dismiss that opinion as a given then have the audacity to defend POTUS and try and look for a local democratic scapegoat.

The logic defies explaination. Bush's actions, in not holding "Brownie" accountable, and sending an unambiguous message that performance counts in this administration, speaks volumes about the problems with this government and those who defend it.

FEMA Director Brown serves at the pleasure of the President. So far Bush must be pleased. I am not pleased with him. I am not pleased with Blanco. Nor with Mayor Nagin once I saw the inexplicable pictures of unused busses sitting in a flooded parking lot.

I am not pleased with the Sheriff of Gretna across the bridge from New Orleans who kept would-be evacuees from leaving the city on foot -- at gunpoint.

I am pleased with those who were effective, like the Coast Guard, General Honore and his staff, the countless doctors, nurses, ems and other medical personnel who manually ventalated patients once the power went out or just held the hand of the sick to give comfort when the medicine ran out. I'm pleased with the folks at Wal-Mart who were more effective than any government body, the police and firemen who stayed at their posts without rest and without knowing whether their families or homes were safe. I'm pleased with those who volunteered but were sent to sit in Atlanta and were used as propaganda props by FEMA and the White House, just as I'm pleased with the Red Cross folks, even though they were kept out of where they were needed most by the Governor.

Few if any of those heroes will get medals, but "Brownie" probably will, and Nagin and Blanco will get to run for re-election standing in front of pictures of the suffering -- just like Bush did with 9/11. Please keep in mind however, that the dismal Federal response to this catastrophie is in no way ameliorated by mistakes locally, and visa-versa.

We should learn great lessons from this, but we won't, any more than the lessons of 9/11 have been acted on (which if they were, this situation would have been handled better). What will happen is this will be reduced merely to partisan sniping and recrimination filled hearings which resemble white-washes more than responsible government leadership.

Wow! That sure justifies the federal government's slow response, Bush's slow return from vacation, his absurdly out-of-touch 'speeches' on this, his jokes while people were dying, his mother's disgusting comments, his appointing a former (failed) horse-race-judge commissioner to oversee the Federal Emergency Management Agency, let's see what else does this eliminate...

Give me a friggen break already!

I'm sure there's a good reason and that this is not all of the story. If not, then she should be held accountable - not instead of federal agencies, but just like them and everyone else who could have done a better job.

Do you seriously think Blanco is sitting there intentionally preventing food and water from getting to those whose lives could be saved by it?

It makes me sick that there are actually people in this country who will support a president who clearly, blatantly, shamelessly seems to think that the perks of his job are actually all there is to his job.

You actually think that a president who promotes a former Arabian horse show commissioner to head up FEMA - Michael Brown, who wasn't even considered comepetent at that job - is less responsible for this crisis when Blanco actually did request help, the proof of which has come from Honore and is also available on the governor's website?

I'm sorry but George W. Bush ran on the platform of 'homeland security' and 'preparedness', not Blanco, and not Nagin.

If you're going to blame, blame all who failed.

Passing the buck, for this administration, just looks weak and childish, and certainly not prepared for much of anything

the reason for this harping against blanco is because NO ONE ELSE IS DOING IT. OF COURSE all levels of government should be held accountable IF there WAS a slow response. But the MSM keeps harping against Bush and federal, while saying local and state are "heros".

we all beg to differ.

Hmmmm.

@ Mark Adams

"Your incessent defense of POTUS and redirection of attacks at Blanco and to a lessor degree, Nagin, seem stikingly partisan, and dismissable as such. You indict FEMA, but they are directly answerable to the President."

Ok then. I won't bother educating you, but could you go through the trouble of explaining the effect of the Posse Comitatus Act on limiting the possible responses by the President and the impact of the Stafford Act on the federal response in general?

Also explain, in detail, the legally required coordination between state and local officials and FEMA, and how FEMA is required to conduct itself.

Also please explain the Constitutional and legal framework that governs the interaction between the govenor of a State of these United States and the President of the United States.

Then perhaps cover the aspects of American federalism that governs the relationship between the various States, the federal government, the President & Executive Branch agencies and Congress.

Make it as lengthy and detailed as you can please.

Thanks.

Blanco arrested?

Yep, she was picked up by the fuzz...and then swung around by the tits....

Hmm, well, I assume that by educating me, you are referring to the fact that under this President, the director of FEMA has become subservient to Homeland Security, but the Director nonetheless serves at the pleasure of the President.

As for the Stafford Act: being a "duly enacted law of congress" as contemplated in the Posse Comitatus Statute -Title 18, U.S. Code, Section 1385, it trumps Posse Comitatus (at least for 10 days) and does indeed allow military forces of the United States to assist with law enforcement under the direction and athority of FEMA. Three days before Katrina hit land, POTUS fully authorized the director to invoke whatever actions he deemed necessary in the disaster declaration.

For your further amusement, you can look at my comments here and a more complete analysis at my blog.

typical conservative tactic - only report the facts that help your case, ignoring the rest that reveal the entire story. go to that red cross link listed above and you'll find the truth. the website clearly says that the national guard REQUESTED that the red cross did not enter because it would ENCOURAGE PEOPLE TO STAY. oh my god, its amazing what can happen if you read a little further.

also, even if the national guard did tell them they couldn't enter the city, who is ultimately in control of the national guard? huh? what elected official has the ULTIMATE AUTHORITY over the NATIONAL GUARD?? is it the governor of louisiana? no, not her. who could it be? oh wait, i know!! THE COMMANDER AND CHIEF!!! your ignorance sickens me.

"what elected official has the ULTIMATE AUTHORITY over the NATIONAL GUARD?. i know!! THE COMMANDER AND CHIEF!!! your ignorance sickens me."

Where does one even begin to attempt to educate people with this level of stupidity about how their own government operates?

Disgusted ... maybe you wouldn't be so disgusted if you would pick up an 8th grade civics book and read it from cover to cover.

Then you will know about why Governors, and not the federal government, control the National Guard.

how republicans doing things?
Keep reading the full article on that link of Red Cross, u will also find out that
"The Red Cross does not conduct search and rescue operations. We are an organization of civilian volunteers and cannot get relief aid into any location until the local authorities say it is safe and provide us with security and access.

The original plan was to evacuate all the residents of New Orleans to safe places outside the city. With the hurricane bearing down, the city government decided to open a shelter of last resort in the Superdome downtown. We applaud this decision and believe it saved a significant number of lives.

As the remaining people are evacuated from New Orleans, the most appropriate role for the Red Cross is to provide a safe place for people to stay and to see that their emergency needs are met. We are fully staffed and equipped to handle these individuals once they are evacuated."

So why you people only read first sentence of the full article? Do u think you should just read a little bit further and be fair a little bit?

check my blog for detailed analysis about this lie

http://howrepublicanslie.blogspot.com/
enjoy, and be logical

After seeing Fox reporter Major Garrett on TV, I went to the Red Cross FAQ website yesterday 9/7/05 and read how Louisiana officials denied the Red Cross access to the Super Dome to hand out relief supplies right after the hurricane passed. I went back to the Red Cross site today and the FAQ web page was totally different.I may be wrong but it appears to me someone got to the Red Cross to make the page seem less critical of Louisiana officials, and contained less information such as how the Red Cross was ready to go in but were denied by state Homeland Security Department. Maybe one of your Blog audience saved or printed out yesterdays page.Keep up the good work. Bob G.

There IS no Louisiana Homeland Security Department.

You guys are so gullible.

Anyway, the National Response Plan gave DHS the powers to do what needed to be done.

So why didn't Bush order the right things to be done?

There is no Louisiana Homeland Security Department?

Who put up this web page?:

http://www.loep.state.la.us/

Wow Turbino, make that one up yourself? Hey, how about this one. "There IS no state of Louisiana, so there couldn't be a governor who forbade the delivery of relief supplies to New Orleans."

For the unbelievably stupid people, here's the homepage for the Louisiana Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness.
http://www.loep.state.la.us/homeland/default.htm

You might also want to read this article in the New York Times, which details how the federal government was forced to contemplate invoking the INSURRECTION ACT to get around Governor Blanco's footdragging. She stalled. They balked - can you imagine the repercussions if they'd used it? People died.

wf,

I believe you have missed the point: Gov. Blanco ordered those under her command to stop the Red Cross from providing food and water that would have saved lives, and the media isn't reporting it besides Fox News. What does your post do to address this? The fact that Red Cross officials believe opening the Superdome saved lives isn't in dispute. The fact that lives at the Superdome were lost because of dehydration isn't in dispute either, at least based upon early analysis of the situation and first hand accounts by city and state officials. The fact that water will prevent dehydration isn't in dispute. So, I fail to understand how you can justify the loss of life the Gov. caused by her orders by providing evidence that the Gov. also saved lives by some of her other orders.
Moreover, the fact the media keep harping on Bush and congratulating themselves for "getting a spine" again while not reporting on the direct loss of life caused by the Dem. Gov.'s decision is scandalous, in the context of the crap thrown at Bush anyway and propelled by CNN especially.
Where am I wrong?

Holy smokes!

Okay, it's like this: from the moment Bush declared an emergency, FEMA was responsible for coordination.

FEMA was MIA. It did not coordinate on the ground.

The whole bit about a "struggle" is just the effects of the federal govt failing to implement its own National Response Plan (NRP), which was accepted December 2004.

Bush's admin crafted a plan to avoid all the problems you Bush defenders are trying to hide behind now. Here's the chart of state vs. fed responsibilities from the NRP:

http://tinyurl.com/9w3fv

You guys are so pre-9-11 in claiming all these obstacles to federal involvement.

I also posted this in the September 06, Nagin thread but it also pertains to Blanco.

Nagin is a bullsh*tting, incompetent punk [adjective: Slang: Of poor quality; inferior] whose only qualifications for the job is that he's as corrupt as the rest of the local government.

Blanco is a bullsh*tting, incompetent punkess [adjective: Slang: Of poor quality; inferior] whose only qualifications for the job was the (D) next to her name on the ballot.

I lived in the Gulfport/Biloxi area for four years from 2000-2004. I'm more then familiar with that whole area and New Orleans as well.

New Orleans is a turd bowl reeking of sh*t, piss, vomit and decay. Oh... did I mention this was before the hurricane.

The corruption of New Orleans local government and police force rivals the best (worst??) that Mexico has to offer (I lived on the Mexican border as well for 5 years).

I am all for spending federal funds (our tax dollars) to help in the aftermath, whatever it takes. However, I don't want one thin dime of my taxes going towards any rebuilding of that turd bowl city. Not one dime.

Common sense says don't build below sea level in hurricane prone areas. By the way, don't forget to thank the French for New Orleans (and also thank them for the couple of tents and cots their donating now).

I applaud House Speaker Dennis Hastert for having the gonads to say publicly what I and many others feel about rebuilding that turd bowl city.

It would take many Billions of dollars, possibly 100's of Bill