WES CLARK DECLARES BUSH Mishandled Storm! - DesMoines Register article [View All]

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Politics
In Iowa, Clark declares Bush mishandled storm

By JOLENE STEVENS
REGISTER CORRESPONDENT
September 2, 2005
Sioux City, Ia. — Retired Gen. Wesley Clark, traveling in Iowa on Thursday, was sharply critical of the Bush administration's preparation for and response to the Hurricane Katrina disaster.

"I think it's awful that we left 100,000 people stranded in New Orleans," Clark told reporters at a Sioux City news conference.

He said federal officials had plenty of warning and should have been more prepared.

"First of all, we all saw the storm coming. This did not come in the middle of the night like a terrorist attack. It was very clearly presented for hours before it struck," he said.

"We should have mobilized a joint task force, pre-positioned the National Guard, and lined up the evacuation assets," Clark continued.

"We can do much better than this in our country," he said.
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Addressing the high gasoline prices in the wake of damage to the oil industry on the Gulf Coast, he said that "assuming we can get the materials out and ease supply restraints," he would support a move to tap into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve at this point to ease gas and oil prices.
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For the longer term, he advocated an alternative energy policy, including using ethanol, to ease the country's reliance on fossil fuels. http://desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050902/NEWS09/509020383/1056