Bush Administration playing the blame ga me

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ENVIRONMENT

E-mail suggests government seeking to blame groups

By Jerry Mitchell

jmitchell@clarionledger.com

Federal officials appear to be seeking proof to blame the flood of New Orleans on environmental groups, documents show.

The Clarion-Ledger has obtained a copy of an internal e-mail the U.S. Department of Justice sent out this week to various U.S. attorneys' offices: "Has your district defended any cases on behalf of the (U.S.) Army Corps of Engineers against claims brought by environmental groups seeking to block or otherwise impede the Corps work on the levees protecting New Orleans? If so, please describe the case and the outcome of the litigation."

Cynthia Magnuson, a spokeswoman for the Justice Department, said Thursday she couldn't comment "because it's an internal e-mail."

Shown a copy of the e-mail, David Bookbinder, senior attorney for Sierra Club, remarked, "Why are they (Bush administration officials) trying to smear us like this?"

The Sierra Club and other environmental groups had nothing to do with the flooding that resulted from Hurricane Katrina that killed hundreds, he said. "It's unfortunate that the Bush administration is trying to shift the blame to environmental groups. It doesn't surprise me at all."

Federal officials say the e-mail was prompted by a congressional inquiry but wouldn't comment further.

Whoever is behind the e-mail may have spotted the Sept. 8 issue of National Review Online that chastised the Sierra Club and other environmental groups for suing to halt the corps' 1996 plan to raise and fortify 303 miles of Mississippi River levees in Louisiana, Mississippi and Arkansas.

The corps settled the litigation in 1997, agreeing to hold off on some work until an environmental impact could be completed. The National Review article concluded: "Whether this delay directly affected the levees that broke in New Orleans is difficult to ascertain."

The problem with that conclusion?

The levees that broke causing New Orleans to flood weren't Mississippi River levees. They were levees that protected the city from Lake Pontchartrain levees on the other side of the city.

When Katrina struck, the hurricane pushed tons of water from the Gulf of Mexico into Lake Pontchartrain, which borders the city to the north. Corps officials say the water from the lake cleared the levees by 3 feet. It was those floodwaters, they say, that caused the levees to degrade until they ruptured, causing 80 percent of New Orleans to flood.

[snip]”

“So asking questions equals blame? Believe me the Administration is not interested in getting involved in the blame game. Republicans leave that the the Democrats.

Without the blame game Democrats would not have a party platform.”

“Even you can't possibly be that stupid.”

“Hmmm, liberals complaining about blame laying? Bawhahahahaha!”

“The Clarion Ledger in Mississippi is a liberal newspaper???”

““Hmmm, liberals (Geo) complaining about blame laying? Bawhahahahaha!”

It's been wall to wall bltching and blaming around here for weeks and suddenly blaming others is wrong? Rich man, very rich.”

“What's rich, Nigal, is that you didn't even read the story, or you'd know how stupid you sound. The guy you elected is trying to duck responsibility by blaming environmentalists for something that has absolutely nothing to do with the flooding that occurred, perhaps as a result of his cuts in funding to the Corps of Engineers.

It's the right that has been crying about the blame game, and now they turn right around and start looking for ways to blame the left.

And you wonder why you have no credibility??? Do you neocons think everybody is as stupid as you?”

“If you were informed as to my opinions Geo you’d know that I do hold Bush accountable and I do think he is a disaster. The fact that I don’t jump on top of the house and crow it to the world every single day doesn’t mean I’m not motivated. The saddest thing is how you sit on your ass and cry, blame and complain yet seem to take no action other than cutting and pasting on a backpacking board. Tell me, what have YOU done in all this to change the situation?


It’s not your opinions I don’t care for it’s you absolute lack of effort when you recognize something as wrong that I find irritating.
last edited: 9/18/05 1:19:22 PM”

“The republican blame game has been interesting within the party itself. The FEMA director was made the fallguy for the inadequacies of Department of Homeland Security Bush appointee Chertoff who had the heat taken off himself by Bush's claim to be responsible. Remember it's Chertoff who is really responsible and it's interesting how he is being protected by republicans.


(CNN) "Where was Chertoff?
But the men in charge of the federal Department of Homeland Security and FEMA in the critical days immediately after the hurricane haven't shared the blame.

Michael Chertoff, the Homeland Security secretary, has offered no explanation as to why he waited three days after the National Hurricane Center predicted a catastrophic hurricane to declare Katrina an incident of "national significance."

In a memo written the day after Katrina made landfall, Chertoff said the Department of Homeland Security will be part of the task force and will assist the [Bush] administration. But the National Response Plan, designed to guide disaster recovery and relief, dictates that the Homeland Security secretary leads the federal response. ( Watch video on Chertoff's delays -- 3:09)

Chertoff appointed Michael Brown, then director of FEMA, as the federal official in charge in the Gulf states. Brown was relieved of his post late last week and resigned from FEMA Monday after taking the brunt of the criticism over the response."”

“Geo is a member of the West Virginia Highlands Conservancy.

He is more involved in caring for the environment than most.

One might even say that he literally goes out of his way to do so, since he lives in Philadelphia.”

“Nigal, what I've done or what you have done is irrelevant. I haven't asked what you have or have not done, and it's none of your business what I have or have not done. You have no idea what I have or haven't done, so don't try to act like you do. All you've been doing that I can see is jumping on anything I post, to the point of posting your crap on a thread I started about a photo essay I authored. If you don't like what I post, phuck off and don't read it.”

“My point is made.

Powerless do nothing...”

“And here I thought you were nice guy, Geo!!”

“Now you're sounding like Sarge.”

“Yeah, like a busy-body.”

“it may be too soon for this, but...

Q: What's George Bush's position on Roe v. Wade?
A: He really doesn't care how people get out of New Orleans.”

“What grown-ups refer to as ‘accountability’, this administration labels ‘the blame game’.

What a pathetic bunch of children.”

“Nigal,

There are plenty of people working to change the situation.

In terms of disaster relief, K and I have sent a contribution to the Red Cross.

We also worked very hard during the past election to support a successful Republican for Congress and an unsuccessful candidate for President.

Since the election, I have sent several letters to my representative in Congress and helped my local raise money (non-dues) for the next election cycle.

In my spare time, I also post to a backpacking website about how badly Bush is mismanaging the country.

And every day, I try to educate myself about what is going on.

BTW, I also support the continued presence of troops in Iraq, and even increased levels, despite the fact that I opposed the war at the start and think that it has been a terrible error.

Personally, that is much better than fair-weather Bush supporters who liked the war and tax cuts when it was fun and now go running home to mommy because things went badly.

Be consistent. Support you man.”

“BTW, I think that responding specifically to Katrina is stupid.

Sure, we have to help people in the emergency situation.

But if Bush spends 200 billion to rebuild that city and fills it back up with people who don't have the money to get an education or health care, then it will be 200 billion wasted.

The proper response is to spend as little rebuilding New Orleans as possible. Jack up the tax incentives, take care of the infrastructure. Then, fix health care and education on a national level.

The problems of New Orleans are national problems. They need to be fixed on a national basis.”

“Tilt; it's still too early [snicker, snort]”

“At home, the job of a president is to help cultures change. The culture needs to be changed. I call it, so people can understand what I'm talking about, changing the culture from one that says, "If it feels good, do it, and if you've got a problem, blame somebody else," to a culture in which each of us understands we're responsible for the decisions we make in life. I call it the responsibility era.
-- George W. Bush

”

“Chertoff deep sixes an administration talking point.



[...]
Testifying before a special House committee created to probe the slow federal response to Katrina, Chertoff deflected questions about his own actions by telling lawmakers he had relied on Federal Emergency Management Agency experts with decades of experience in hurricane response.

"I'm not a hurricane expert," he said repeatedly.
[...]
When Brown testified before the committee last month, he blamed state and local officials in Louisiana for the slow response to Katrina. Chertoff disagreed.

"From my own experience, I don't endorse those views," he said.
[...]
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20051019/ap_on_go_ca_st_pe/katrina_chertoff”