How's Obama Doing on Gulf Coast Recovery?

[Louisiana1976]

For many people in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast, the election of President Barack Obama to the White House last November brought a sense of renewed hope -- or at least an opportunity to change the course of the region's stalled Katrina recovery.

But a report released today by the Institute for Southern Studies finds that, so far, many Gulf Coast advocates give the administration low marks for their Gulf recovery -- and they don't think Washington has lived up to its promises to make rebuilding a priority.

<snip>

President Obama had made the federal government's obligation to Gulf Coast rebuilding -- and the Bush administration's failure to fulfill that promise -- a centerpiece of his campaign and agenda. As Obama said on a campaign stop in New Orleans in August 2007, "Let New Orleans be the place where we strengthen those bonds of trust, where a city rises up on a new foundation that can be broken by no storm."

Obama repeated his commitment in New Orleans in February 2008:

"The broken promises did not start when a storm hit, and they did not end there ... I promise you that when I'm in the White House I will commit myself every day to keeping up Washington's end of this trust. This will be a priority of my presidency."

But the Institute's new report , based on surveys with over 50 Gulf Coast community leaders, reveals ongoing frustration with the scope and pace of federal initiatives...

<snip>

Here's more:
http://www.southernstudies.org/2009/08/special-report-obama-congress-get-d-grades-from-gulf-advocates-for-katrina-recovery-efforts.html

[babylonsister]

1. Some folks seem to think he's doing a good job,

but nice try.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20090827/us-katrina-obama/

PROMISES, PROMISES: Praise for Obama on Katrina

http://www.nola.com/news/index.ssf/2009/08/obama_keeps_close_tabs_on_new.html

Obama keeps close tabs on New Orleans recovery -- from a distance

[BlooInBloo]

2. Hilarious reading Vitter and Jindal whine for bigger government too...

" But Sen. David Vitter, R-LA, said he was disappointed that the "administration had to be brought in kicking and screaming" to implement a more flexible arrangement to allow essential building in flood-prone communities such as Grand Isle.

Both Vitter and Jindal faulted the administration for not redesigning a Medicaid funding formula that will dramatically shortchange Louisiana because it counts Road Home and insurance money as if it represented a real and permanent increase in income. "I don't think anybody feels we should lose federal health care dollars because they were victims of an awful event, " Jindal said."

[Louisiana1976]

4. Even a stopped clock is right twice a day. I happen to disagree with Jindal and Vitter

99% of the time but this is one of those rare times they're right.

[FrenchieCat]

3. Many people in Louisiana didn't vote for Pres. Obama.....

But in spite of that.....

Since taking office, Obama has sent 11 members of the Cabinet to the region to inspect progress and to hear local ideas on how to speed up repairs.

"Our approach is simple: Government must keep its responsibility to the people, so that Americans have the opportunity to take responsibility for their future..."
snip
Obama acknowledged that recovery has not come at an acceptable pace.

"I have also made it clear that we will not tolerate red tape that stands in the way of progress or the waste that can drive up the bill," said Obama. "Government must be a partner -- not an opponent -- in getting things done."
http://www.salon.com/wires/ap/us/2009/08/29/D9ACS67O0_us_obama_katrina/


About $26 billion in stimulus funds have been set aside for the Gulf Coast States for infrastructure, education, rebuilding efforts according to the White House.
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0809/26566.html


Read more: http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0809/26566.html#ixzz0Rg2b5AO1
Obama Vows to Speed Hurricane Katrina Recovery Effort
By HELENE COOPER
Published: August 29, 2009

OAK BLUFFS, Mass. — President Obama used his weekly radio address on Saturday to note the fourth anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, pledging to work to advance the recovery effort along the Gulf Coast and announcing that he would visit New Orleans before the end of the year.
snip
He said his administration had put in place dispute-settlement programs in an effort to speed up the recovery.

In addition, he said, the government has freed up hundreds of millions of dollars in assistance that has not been distributed.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/30/us/politics/30radio.html


...his administration has shown a dogged dedication to bending the federal bureaucracy in what Flozell Daniels Jr., president and CEO of the , describes as a “kinder, gentler” direction. With “federal agencies finally working as partners and not adversaries, ” Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-LA, said, “in its first seven months, the Obama Administration has made significant progress toward making the Gulf Coast recovery effort quicker and more efficient.” “I would say what they have demonstrated in this first year is a low-key but genuine commitment to accelerate the business of recovery,” said Amy Liu, deputy director of the Brookings Institution’s Metropolitan Policy Program, which publishes an annual x, detailing the city’s progress since Katrina.
http://charitynews.jollypeople.com/obama-keeps-close-tabs-on-new-orleans-recovery-from-a-distance-2009-hurricane-katrina/200908227881/

Obama praised for Katrina work
By Becky Bohrer and Ben Evans, Associated Press August 27, 2009

snip
Gov. Bobby Jindal, R-La., says Obama's team has brought a more practical and flexible approach. Many local officials offer similar reviews. Even Doug O'Dell, former President George W. Bush's recovery coordinator, says the Obama administration's "new vision" appears to be turning things around.
snip
But Jindal said he had a lot of respect for the current FEMA chief, Craig Fugate, and his team. "There is a sense of momentum and a desire to get things done," the governor said.

Added O'Dell: "I think the results are self-evident."

The retired Marine general served what he calls a frustrating stint as Bush's recovery coordinator last year. "What people have said to me is that for whatever reason, problems that were insurmountable under previous leadership are getting resolved quickly," O'Dell said.

"And I really hate to say that because (the top FEMA leaders) in my time there were good, hardworking, earnest men, but they were also the victims of their own bureaucracy."
http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0809/082709ap1.htm

[babylonsister]

5. Great links, Frenchie. It's just a shame Obama hasn't been able

to miraculously fix all of the gulf coast's ills since January. Sheesh, "some" would like us to believe he's not even trying! Imagine that.

Your post is bookmarkable!