A few comments in need of further explanation

March 2, 2006

Last night, NBC Nightly News reported that the White House did not necessarily consider the new Katrina video as a political problem. NBC reported, “Tonight a White House official says the tape does not contradict anything the Bush Administration has said.”

I suspect the Bush gang went from 1 to 10 on the damage-control meter as soon as the story hit the wires yesterday afternoon, but this defense needs a little work.

For example, the president’s “I don’t think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees” from Sept. 1 hasn’t exactly escaped the public’s attention. And the new video does show Max Mayfield telling the president, “I don’t think any model can tell you with any confidence right now whether the levees will be topped or not but that is obviously a very, very grave concern.”

Let’s also not forget what Bush told ABC News just two days ago.

“Listen, here’s the problem that happened in Katrina. There was no situational awareness, and that means that we weren’t getting good, solid information from people who were on the ground, and we need to do a better job. One reason we weren’t is because communications systems got wiped out, and in many cases we were relying upon the media, who happened to have better situational awareness than the government.”

In context, Bush seems to be referring to the communications between emergency workers in New Orleans and the chain of command, but his comments nevertheless reflect a disconnect between White House spin and a video that shows plenty of “situational awareness” and ample “good, solid information.”

Maybe if ‘Curveball’ had told the the levees might break, they would have done something? The really do ignore everything they don’t like, don’t they?

Let’s not forget that after being warned that the levees were a “very, very grave concern” – that save for a few photo ops – Bush remained on vacation for a week.

  • I am sure that while the White House spins this away as being of no consequence, behind the scenes Bush is fit to be tied, and Rove is ruthlessly trying to find the whistleblower who leaked this information to the AP. One would think there’s a fairly short list of individuals who had access to this information. Undoubtedly the GOP leadership in Congress will soon be calling for hearings into the identity of the leaker.

    PS – Those shots of Bush in that little dark room are a perfect metaphor for “being inside the bubble.”

  • Why didn’t they consider this a PR problem? Are they just as clueless or they delusional? Heck just about everyone else sees it… It may only confirm what people feel or even know and not really offer anything new – but images and video tapes are powerful.

  • Let me take a shot at translating BushRoveCo. to English:

    Phrase: “We don’t see this as a PR problem”

    Translation: “Sticks and stones (and pretzels) may break my bones, but all the bad PR in the world can’t hurt a meglomaniacal second-term administration that never has to face election again, controls both chambers of Congress and the judiciary (not to mention all of the spooks!) and can do whatever the hell it pleases with impunity.”

  • All I can say is is that if my fellow citizens, you know, the wankers and morons from Louisiana and Mississippi who voted for George Bush a second time, vote Republican for any federal office in 2006 and 2008, the rest of the country should consider cutting off all funding of all aid to the region. Bush’s conduct and lies are terrible and show once again his and his administration’s incompetence. However, if the good people of Louisiana and Mississippi reward this conduct by voting for GOP Representatives, Senators and President, then they themselves will be the only ones to blame for their own outrageous actions and incompetence.

  • JohnnyB — I think you’re spot on about Rove and company going into overdrive to find the whistleblower(s). I take this as a good sign. There are still people inside of government who will step forward to make sure the American people are getting the truth.

  • I think I saw on Olberman AP just got this through open sources or FOIA. I may be thinking of something else but this was just sitting there for the taking.

    Good evening. Six months to the day after Hurricane Katrina roared ashore, half a year in which the White House has claimed repeatedly that no one could have anticipated how bad it would be. A wealth of evidence, much of it caught on tape, now revealing that President Bush was indeed fully briefed about the storm’s potential and all of the damage it might do.

    Our fifth story on the COUNTDOWN, what may well become known as the Bush tapes, six days worth of videos and transcripts. The irony, the media has had at least one of those tapes all along. The Associated Press getting credit for digging up the full trove.

    SNIP

    OLBERMANN: A heck of a job. In the days after the storm other evidence revealing federal officials were slow to realize they did not have sufficient resources to deal with the unfolding disaster. And as we mentioned, at least one day of tapes had been there for the taking all along, released by FEMA the day they were recorded, August 28 of last year, a day before the storm hit, a so-called hand-out tape.

    http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11638354/

  • “Listen, here’s the problem that happened in Katrina. There was no situational awareness….

    in a nutshell..
    Bush didn’t ask a single question.
    There is no situational awareness in the whitehouse for the wellbeing of the nation, which is the real business of government.

    He’s just not interested.

  • I can just hear his smugness when he *explains* what happened with the response to the storm. “Listen, here’s the problem that happened in Katrina…” As if he thinks the listener knows nothing and W has to speak clearly and slowly. If he only knew. Fucking idiot.

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