Bush told us that we needed to fight in Iraq to save lives here at home, yet – after moving hundreds of billions of domestic dollars to the Persian Gulf – there are bodies floating through the streets of New Orleans

When the levee breaks »
The Daily News / pnionline

It appears that the money has been moved in the president’s budget to handle homeland security and the war in Iraq. Nobody locally is happy that the levees can’t be finished, and we are doing everything we can to make the case that this is a security issue for us.
Walter Maestri, emergency management chief for Jefferson Parish, Louisiana; New Orleans Times-Picayune, June 8, 2004

The Army Corps of Engineers never tried to hide the fact that the spending pressures of the war in Iraq, as well as homeland security – coming at the same time as federal tax cuts – was the reason for the strain. At least nine articles in the Times-Picayune from 2004 and 2005 specifically cite the cost of Iraq as a reason for the lack of hurricane- and flood-control dollars.

Washing Away »
New Orleans Times-Picayune
2002 five-part series forecasting exactly what is happening now in New Orleans

February 7th 2005 »
New Orleans CityBusiness

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has identified millions of dollars in flood and hurricane protection projects in the New Orleans district. Chances are, though, most projects will not be funded in the president's 2006 fiscal year budget to be released today.

As the cost of the conflict in Iraq soared, President Bush proposed spending less than 20 percent of what the Corps said was needed for levees around Lake Pontchartrain. Those levees are now breached, and the city of New Orleans is inundated. 

Overseas deployments hinder
Guard hurricane presence »
Army Times / AP

Some 6,000 National Guard personnel in Louisiana and Mississippi who would be available to help deal with the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina are in Iraq, highlighting the changing role of America’s part-time soldiers.

The war has forced the Guard into becoming an operational force, a far cry from its historic role as a strategic reserve primarily available to governors for disasters and other duties in their home states.

Demands of wars strain relief effort »
Boston Globe / The Age

The National Guard's scramble to bring aid and order to New Orleans and the Gulf Coast is hamstrung by the fact that units across the US have only about half their usual amount of equipment – helicopters, trucks and weapons – because much of it has been siphoned off to fight the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

"In the four years since 9/11 that we have been at war, equipment has been beaten up, blown up, or simply left behind," said John Goheen, of the National Guard Association of the United States. "States have had to borrow equipment and make do with a lot less equipment. We are short literally thousands of Humvees."

Direct Result of Bush Policy: Work on New Orleans' east bank hurricane levees stopped last summer for the first time in 37 years »
Independent UK / AmericaBlog

Déjà vu with a vengeance »
Frank Rich / NY Times

As always, the president's first priority ... was saving himself. ... This administration would like us to forget a lot, starting with the simple fact that next Sunday is the fourth anniversary of the day we were attacked by Al Qaeda, not Iraq. ... we cannot allow ourselves to forget the real history surrounding 9/11; it is the Rosetta stone for what is happening now. If we are to pull ourselves out of the disasters of Katrina and Iraq alike, we must live in the real world, not the fantasyland of the administration's faith-based propaganda. Everything connects. ... From the president's administration's inattention to threats before 9/11 to his disappearing act on the day itself to the reckless blundering in the ill-planned war of choice that was 9/11's bastard offspring, Katrina is déjà vu with a vengeance.

"I don't think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees."
George W Bush
Thursday September 1 2005

Daily KOS: He honestly said that. If that brings up more than a passing twinge of familiarity, being a more than remarkable restatement of Condi Rice's now-famous assertion to the Senate panel -- then I suppose we shouldn't be surprised.

But it does bring up something that we joke about often, but apparently have never taken quite seriously enough: our President is an idiot. I don't mean an average, run-of-the-mill idiot. I mean an idiot who apparently, for the entire duration of his presidency, literally was paying absolutely no attention to even the most life-threateningly critical tasks of government.

The administration specifically cut the funds to fix these specific levees, in order to specifically divert that Corps money to Iraq, despite urgent warnings and predictions of catastrophic disaster if the levees were breeched.  The administration specifically cancelled the Clinton-backed flood control program to preserve and restore the wetlands between New Orleans and the gulf, instead specifically opening parts of that buffer zone for development.

Washington Post: Diane Sawyer's rare live interview with President Bush this morning on ABC's Good Morning America exposed one of the president's greatest weaknesses: He doesn't have the answers to some of the most important questions.

NY Times: Waiting for a Leader. George W. Bush gave one of the worst speeches of his life yesterday, especially given the level of national distress and the need for words of consolation and wisdom. In what seems to be a ritual in this administration, the president appeared a day later than he was needed.

Knight-Ridder: Federal Government Wasn't Ready for Katrina, Disaster Experts Say. "What you're seeing is revealing weaknesses in the state, local and federal levels," said Eric Tolbert, who until February was FEMA's disaster response chief. "All three levels have been weakened. They've been weakened by diversion into terrorism."

Daily KOS: US won't let Canada help Katrina victims. Planes are ready to load with food and medical supplies and a system called "DART" which can provide fresh water and medical supplies is standing by.Canadian agencies are saying that foreign aid is probably not being permitted into Louisiana and Mississippi because of "mass confusion" at the U.S. federal level in the wake of the storm.

Pelosi: Bush "oblivious, in denial, dangerous"

The Nation: Have You No Shame?

E&P: Let them eat cake!

Compassionate Conservatives
After doing all he could to prevent the rescue of drowning Americans, reassigned – yet still not fired – FEMA Director Michael Brown wants to go home (at least he still has one) and enjoy "a stiff margarita."

Bible thumping Republican Senator Rick Santorum wants to sanction survivors for staying »
NPJ note - If anybody can find the passage in the Bible that says that this is how you're supposed to treat the poor, elderly, and infirm, please email us

Breaking news - Halliburton executives to take massive cut in pay!  ... or maybe this will only apply to the people at the other end of the economic ladder:  President signs executive order allowing contractors to pay below prevailing wage in affected areas

Wall Street Journal: Rep. Richard Baker of Baton Rouge is overheard telling lobbyists: "We finally cleaned up public housing in New Orleans. We couldn't do it, but God did."

Laura Bush deeply empathizes with all who were affected by hurricane Corina - video

How many places will be in shambles by the time the Bush crew leaves office? »
Maureen Dowd / NY Times

Given that the Bush team has dealt with both gulf crises, Iraq and Katrina, with the same deadly mixture of arrogance and incompetence, and a refusal to face reality, it's frightening to think how it will handle the most demanding act of government domestic investment since the New Deal.

Even though we know W. likes to be in his bubble with his feather pillow, the stories this week are breathtaking about the lengths the White House staff had to go to in order to capture Incurious George's attention.

How Bush Blew It »
Newsweek
Bureaucratic timidity, bad phone lines and a failure of imagination. Why the government was so slow to respond to catastrophe.
AmericaBlog: What we learn in the Newsweek story

Blackwater Down »
AlterNet

Heavily-armed mercenary forces in New Orleans only demonstrates what everyone already feared: the utter breakdown of the government.

Law skirting money grubbing hypocritical thieving deceivers
Barbara Bush's Katarina donation routed to her son's ridiculously overpriced "educational" software »
Houston Chronicle
"I've never heard of anything so blatant: Pull at your heart strings with Katrina victims and then make sure your son profits from it."
TPM »
... the junk company owned by her ne'er-do-well son Neil Bush ... who goes around the world finding international statesmen, bigwigs and criminals who want to 'invest' in Ignite! as a way to curry favor with the brother in the White House.
TPM »
So how is it exactly you get away with making a tax subsidized contribution that you stipulate must be used to purchase products from a company in which you are a partial owner?
Leaving Children Behind: Exam privatization threatens public schools »
Ben Clarke / CorpWatch
Business as usual »
Joe Conason / Salon.com

FEMA Abandons Pledge on Four No-Bid Katrina Contracts »
Ben Clarke / CorpWatch
Agency will extend, not rebid, deals with politically connected firms ... including three that federal auditors say wasted significant amounts of money.

White House Knew of Levee's Failure on Night of Storm »
NY Times

Category 5 Corruption
U.S. Paying a Premium to Cover Storm-Damaged Roofs »
Knight Ridder

Lack of oversight, generous contracting deals and poor planning mean that government agencies are shelling out as much as 10 times what the temporary fix would normally cost. The government is paying contractors an average of $2,480 for less than two hours of work to cover each damaged roof - even though it's also giving them endless supplies of blue sheeting for free.

Category 5 Corruption: Update
Tracking Katrina money proving difficult »
AP

... Because only new contracts must be disclosed, agencies need not reveal information when awarding no-bid work to politically connected companies such as Halliburton subsidiary Kellogg, Brown & Root that have pre-existing government contracts. Vice President Dick Cheney headed Halliburton from 1995 to 2000.

TIME: How Many More Mike Browns Are Out There? – inquiry finds that at top positions in vital government agencies Bush Administration is putting connections before experience

Over a month and $2 billion later, only 109 families placed in temporary housing »
NY Times

Corporation benevolence in relief efforts:
Carnival Cruise Lines evades US taxes,
screws taxpayers royally »
Washington Post

If the ships were at capacity, with 7,116 evacuees, for six months, the price per evacuee would total $1,275 a week. A seven-day western Caribbean cruise out of Galveston can be had for $599 a person -- and that would include entertainment and the cost of actually making the ship move.
NPJ - if ever there was a reason for a boycot ...

Clean-Up Deal Sleaze »
Times Online

Investigation into allegations that lucrative Hurricane Katrina rebuilding contracts have been awarded to companies with ties to the White House and the Republican Party.

Framing Katrina »
The American Prospect

Hurricane Katrina revealed the failure of conservative philosophy; liberals need to stand up for their approach to governing.

• Government is not the problem. Conservative government is the problem
• Conservatives claim to be the promoters of a strong defense, but ended up delivering only weakness and uncertainty
• Taking care of the wealthy first does nothing to ensure shared sacrifice and mutual responsibility for America’s future
• The tragedy of Katrina was a matter of values and principles

The real costs of a Culture of Greed »
Robert Scheer / LA Times

For half a century, free-market purists have to great effect denigrated the essential role that modern government performs as some terrible liberal plot. Thus, the symbolism of New Orleans' flooding is tragically apt: Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal and Louisiana Gov. Huey Long's ambitious populist reforms in the 1930s eased Louisiana out of feudalism and toward modernity; the Reagan Revolution and the callousness of both Bush administrations have sent them back toward the abyss.

Now we have a president who wastes tax revenues in Iraq instead of protecting us at home. Levee improvements were deferred in recent years even after congressional approval.

Fact is, most (leaders), especially our president, just don't care about the people who can't afford to attend political fundraisers or pay for high-priced lobbyists. No, these folks are supposed to be cruising on the rising tide of a booming, unregulated economy that "floats all boats."

They were left floating all right.

The Post-Katrina Era »
AlterNet

The moral of Katrina is mostly being missed. The tragic consequences were not just due to incompetence, natural disaster, or Bush policies (though he is accountable). The cause was political through and through – a matter of values and principles.

The progressive-liberal values .... (that) translate into a simple principle: Use the common wealth for the common good to better all our lives. In short, promoting the common good is the central role of government.

The right-wing conservatives now in power have the opposite values and principles. Their main value is Rely on individual discipline and initiative. The central principle: Government has no useful role. The only common good is the sum of individual goods. It's the difference between We're all in this together and You're on your own, buddy.

AlterNet: A Hurricane of Consequences –
The Bush administration decision that most directly contributed to the high numbers of unnecessary deaths from Katrina was the 2003 invasion of Iraq.

Guardian: Jefferson Parish president Aaron Broussard told CBS news that government would have to be held accountable for what had happened ... "Take whatever idiot they have at the top, give me a better idiot. Give me a caring idiot. Give me a sensitive idiot. Just don't give me the same idiot."

AmericaBlog: Both Chertoff and Gen. Meyers claim that Tuesday papers said N.O. had dodged a bullet – see for yourself, click here

Is California ready for the big one?
Most needed troops and equipment for disaster relief fighting Bush war in Iraq »
USA Today

The problem for Louisiana and Mississippi isn't how many troops are in Iraq, but rather the kind of soldiers who are there. "It's combat brigades, which are the types of units you need in these situations," he said. Combat brigades – large, self-sustaining units of about 3,000 troops – have the vehicles, communications equipment and structure to cope best with a natural disaster. In Louisiana, communications and mobility are especially critical because most of New Orleans is without water, power and telephone service.

Bush's policies have crippled disaster response capabilities »
Financial Times / AmericaBlog

US politics has been dominated by the conviction that what was wrong with America would be solved by getting government off the people's backs ... There are at least three reasons why the hurricane may mark a turning point in the US debate over the role of government.

US Navy ship with food, water, doctors has been sitting off New Orleans for a week, awaiting order to help »
Chicago Tribune / AmericaBlog
see also:
Northern Command isn't happy
Military Expresses Frustration Over Red Tape

Paul Krugman: A can't-do government
Earl Hutchinson: How to create a crisis
Michael Moore: Vacation is over
Reuters: Apocalypse Now – World Stunned as U.S. Struggles
The Independent: Casual to the Point of Careless – Bush Under Fire

Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard
Must see!  Very moving interview on Meet the Press Sunday September 4th (click here to watch the video) – excerpts:

We have been abandoned by our own country. Hurricane Katrina will go down in history as one of the worst storms ever to hit an American coast. But the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina will go down as one of the worst abandonments of Americans on American soil ever in U.S. history. … Whoever is at the top of this totem pole, that totem pole needs to be chainsawed off and we’ve got to start with some new leadership. It’s not just Katrina that caused all these deaths in New Orleans here. Bureaucracy has committed murder here in the greater New Orleans area and bureaucracy has to stand trial before Congress now…

Three quick examples. We had Wal-Mart deliver three trucks of water. FEMA turned them back. They said we didn’t need them. This was a week ago. FEMA, we had 1,000 gallons of diesel fuel on a Coast Guard vessel docked in my parish. When we got there with our trucks, FEMA says don’t give you the fuel. Yesterday – yesterday – FEMA comes in and cuts all of our emergency communication lines. They cut them without notice. Our sheriff, Harry Lee, goes back in, he reconnects the line. He posts armed guards and said no one is getting near these lines…

I want to give you one last story and I’ll shut up and let you tell me whatever you want to tell me. The guy who runs this building I’m in, Emergency Management, he’s responsible for everything. His mother was trapped in St. Bernard nursing home and every day she called him and said, “Are you coming, son? Is somebody coming?” and he said, “Yeah, Mama, somebody’s coming to get you.” Somebody’s coming to get you on Tuesday. Somebody’s coming to get you on Wednesday. Somebody’s coming to get you on Thursday. Somebody’s coming to get you on Friday… and she drowned Friday night. She drowned Friday night! [Sobbing] Nobody’s coming to get us. Nobody’s coming to get us. The Secretary has promised. Everybody's promised. They’ve had press conferences. I'm sick of the press conferences. For god’s sakes, just shut up and send us somebody.

Strange ... click here for explanation

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