Conyers:Turning Away Aid for Katrina Survivors

[cal04]

For those of you who have had the chance to visit New Orleans, visit the the lower ninth ward, or have seen video footage about this devastated region of the city, this story shouldn't come as a great surprise to you. A huge disappointment perhaps.

The lower ninth, of course, was previously inhabited by lower income families. These families were in great need of assistance immediately following the storm. We all know that the Brownie wasn't doing a great job. And that FEMA's response to the storm was woeful.

But with yesterday's story in the Washington Post, we learn something new entirely about the Bush administration's failure to help those in need. The administration actually turned away assistance from foreign countries. Lots of it. Medical supplies, relief transportation, health care assistance. The administration even thumbed its nose at $400 million of donated petroleum from the United Arab Emirates.

Their answer was thanks, but no thanks. We've got it covered. In fact, they had no idea what they were doing.

The closer we look into the activities of this administration, the more we learn that the experts were shunted aside so that those with political motivations could set policy. Through oversight in a Democratic Congress, we have learned enough to shed light on these kinds of machinations, and hopefully halt them until a responsible administration can take over.

http://johnconyers.com/node/117

[AnnieBW]

1. Kindasleezy was too busy shoe-shopping

She was too busy shoe-shopping in NYC to get back there and field generous requests from other countries. Meanwhile, people were complaining that "we always go and help other countries when they have disasters, but nobody helps us." :wtf:

[frogcycle]

2. there is not sufficient punishment on this earth for this gang

[rodeodance]

3. Rice had a pathethic response on Sunday---the US is not used to recieving

aide--she said the Adm. told them to contact Relief organizations.

in other words-------the feds did not know what to do with the help.

[garthranzz]

4. Blame Nagin, Blame Blanco, but above all - BLAME BUSH!

He drowned my city. There are those here who still don't see it, who think Blanco blinked and Nagin gnashed his teeth (apologies to Where the Wild Things Are), but the Times-Picayune had reported years ago the levees wouldn't hold.

Either the S.F. or Houston Chronicle (I forget which right now) reported in January '01 that the three greatest threats to the U.S. - according to a government assessment - were, in increasing order, an earthquake in S.F., a terrorist attack on NYC and a category 4 or 5 hurricane strking New Orleans. Shrub got two of three.

It's not only political, and ethical, it's personal.

[rudy23]

5. There needs to be an investigation in the house. What about those "embarrassing emails" Brownie

spoke of?

The ones that Lieberman agreed not to investigate, as a favor to Rove.

Those emails. Why can't Conyers get a hold of those emails in the House? Or just to have a real investigation into the response to Katrina.

There's got to be some trace of communication to hurt relief efforts in Louisiana. There's just got to be.

[loudsue]

7. And LIEberman covered bush/rove over the Katrina mess? What an ASSHOLE!!

Every time I think of Gore/Lieberman in 2000, I shudder. I hope that it was a stroke of heavenly grace that didn't put Lieberman in the vp slot at the time. I'm sure Gore would have ended up assassinated, so the PNAC crowd could have their man at the helm.

What we need now is a Gore/Clark ticket.

:kick::kick::kick:

[nadinbrzezinski]

6. Insorar as foeign aide is concerned

having seen that and been there done that... I was not surprised, nor shocked

It followed a pattern that is actually quite common world wide.

And for the record is the frustration of emergency workers world wide

Once you get rid of nationalism, and tribalism, acceptng aide and KNOWING WHAT TO DO WITH IT, will be far easier

[Kurovski]

8. K&R. (nt)

[madokie]

9. another of the many crimes they need to be charged with