Today, it’s the Gulf Coast governors who’ll be testifying before the Senate Finance committtee (Frankly, I think this is quite an imposition on their precious time, considering what they’re trying to deal with at home… but what do I know.)
Update [2005-9-28 12:9:15 by susanhu]: The Washington Post has live VIDEO COVERAGE of the Senate hearing. (C-SPAN does not.)
Update [2005-9-28 12:31:55 by susanhu]: “Forecasts warn major hurricane likely in October”:
“Meteorologists examining the conditions that spawned hurricanes Rita and Katrina say there is a strong likelihood that another intense hurricane will occur in October. … And while late-season storms tend to track eastward toward Florida or don’t make landfall at all, the experts don’t rule out the possibility of another major storm targeting the battered Gulf Coast. …” Los Angeles Times via the Sun-Sentinel.
What is the lineup? Blanco and then…? Anyone else besides Barbour? Will Jebbie be there? He was mentioned quite often by Brownie yesterday as a paragon of good gov-nor-ship — what about Perry? The AL gov.? Is it starting now?
I went to bed early and missed your post. Josh goes in at 1:00 this afternoon. Things seem calm right now there even though he is going to start getting hungry soon. They have a little guy having the hardware put in today this morning, so all the little guys there for extensions were moved to afternoon. My husband is supporting the mom this morning. The first surgery putting the titanium in place is suckey hell!
I’m fine. I’ll be thinking about your little guy (and the big one) all day — much good energy headed your way too! It must be hell for you to be there instead of with them…I can’t imagine.
I have a conference with E’s teacher this afternoon at 1:20…I will keep you all in my thoughts and heart today — call if you need/want to!
I’ve been thinking about them (and you) all morning. Keep us posted.
ps-I’m glad that mom has your husband there for some support. That must be so scary the first time.
.
By PETER SLEVIN, The Washington Post
NEW ORLEANS — Desperate to help his ailing sister-in-law, who had gone five days without kidney dialysis, Samuel Sorapuru tried to flag down National Guard transports. He begged ambulance drivers to stop. He appealed to anyone he encountered in uniform. In the end, he stood for an hour on a highway overpass crowded with stranded refugees — and tried to wave in a helicopter.
◊ by vinifera @dKos
Tue Sep 27th, 2005 at 16:15:15 PDT
Today’s Democracy Now!
Amy Goodman interviewed Corrine Carey from Human Rights Watch, who is investigating some 517 prisoners unaccounted for in the wake of Katrina. Corinne Carey, researcher, U.S. Program Human Rights Watch:
Officers Deserted a Jail Building, Leaving Inmates Locked in Cells▼ ▼ ▼
for Chertoff to be called to testisty about the whole FEMA mess…I’m not sure what bill/amedment he is arguing against but he is pretty pissed off…
which apparently would spread the responsibility for disaster preparedness out of FEMA, and leave FEMA with response duties —
The people who are arguing against it, seem to be arguing that severing preparedness and response is a very bad idea…
yesterday, look to Blanco and others to blast the Feds, no holds-barred. After she explains about what she decreed in her state of emergency (forgetting New Orleans? I don’t think so…) Brownie will learn a new phrase: “Contempt of Congress”….
Wish I could hear it live.
Is it on? Can’t find it on any of the C-Spans — is it later? I see that someone from the Army Corps of Engineers is to testify at 2 today — anyone have any other info.?
Is this on C-SPAN online? I don’t see it there.
(Brown’s testimony is up on C-SPAN’s archives now.)
Sigh … CNN was carrying it live for quite a while. No one is now? Oh well.
I have CNN on in the background. Maybe they’ll cover more of it. I suppose I should check out the Roberts debate (yawn).
I see C-SPAN online is covering the House session where they’re also talking about some bill involving Katrina and FEMA etc.
Catnip, I just discovered by chance that the Washington Post is offering LIVE VIDEO coverage of Blanco before the Senate …
Brief clip of Blanco REFUSING TO COMMENT ON BROWN’S TESTIMONY YESTERDAY! Said she wanted to talk about job creation instead!
Brief clip of Blanco REFUSING TO COMMENT ON BROWN’S TESTIMONY YESTERDAY
sigh.
I’ve got some questions I would like to ask Katherine Blanco myself.
What questions, Colleen? I’m curious.
You know … I remember when Blanco won, and everyone was just thrilled that a Democrat won the governorship. But, alas, I don’t remember much more about her.
What questions, Colleen? I’m curious.
I was pretty appalled by Blanco’s response the first few days after the flooding. She had thousands of people (people who had voted for her) trapped in a flooded city without food or water. I was watching them on CNN and between just sitting there weeping in sorrow and shame I was also feeling bouts of incandescent rage. I never believed the accounts of overwhelmingly dangerous gangs or shooting at helicopters, I didn’t believe that we were unable to help those people survive. Because the Canadians out of Vancouver had gotten in (and indeed were there first), because we could see news teams all over the city, because Harry Connick Jr was wandering around the French Quarter, because I know how air drops work and because I could read the NOLA blog and so on. In other words there was a great deal of information easily available in which contradicted the ‘too dangerous’ story the authorities were promoting at that time.
At some point in the first few days I watched Blanco get on TV and talk about this response and about what was happening to the largest city in her state. The time she got really angry was when she was talking about the ‘looters’. I found that peculiar for all sorts of reasons and I thought that that reaction demonstrated a set of priorities I personally find repulsive.
Later, from reports of people who managed to survive we heard about the response of the Gretna police and that town. The Gretna police chief and the mayor report that they had informed the Governor’s office of their plans to deny access to people trying to evacuate via one of the major highways out of town and proceeded to do just that by shooting over their heads and ordering them to the NO side of the bridge. I looked up Gretna on map quest. If you do that you’ll see the…problem. I’m assuming that Blanco gave the Gretna authorities the green light for ‘protecting’ their town by denying evacuees access to an interstate highway. I would like to see everyone involved in that held accountable and the Gretna authorities are behaving as if they’ve got cover.
There were many failures of leadership on almost all levels of government. We need to learn from them, not provide cover. I refuse to excuse the racism and social Darwinism exposed by Katrina and if Democrats want to be respected as leaders they should act like leaders. The first priority should always be to preserve human life and that is not what happened.
Coleen,
I too felt much rage towards Blanco in the days after Katrina. However, I’ve calmed down and am looking at her role with a bit more detachment. Blanco asked for buses to evacuate people from the city, and was told 500 buses were available by FEMA. What she wasn’t told, is that the buses were more than 6 hours away. That is when she began to comandeer school buses instead.
I didn’t like her reactionary shoot the looters, and she will have to answer to that statement, at a time when people were dying of dehydration.
I like that she has really stepped up her efforts since the storm, whereas the same complaints about FEMA keep pouring in.
I’m still angry for officials not allowing the red cross into New Orleans to take care of these people. But who exactly didn’t allow them in? So many questions…that I intend to continue to pursue.
I will say this for Blanco…she ain’t no Bush. Her heart is in the right place, even if she did fuck up.
She admitted the state made mistakes, and I think they will come to light.
Those statements about the dangers, lawlessness and general thuggery is what the Gretna authorities used to justify their refusal to allow evacuees to cross the bridge.
She issued a statementbefore the hearings:
She said Brown’s comment clearly demonstrates what she says is the “appalling degree” to which he’s “out of touch with the truth or reality.”
P.S. I plugged it in the story below, with link, but just another alert that today’s Democracy Now! spends at least a half hour on Brown’s testimony yesterday, and it’s very good — with commentary.
The govs are testifying before the Senate Finance Committee — not the same House committe as yesterday….