Minneapolis bridge collapse — the administration responds

August 2, 2007

I’ve been hesitant to write about the horrific highway bridge collapse in Minneapolis. It’s hard to even know where to start. Obviously, best wishes go out to the entire community, which has obviously been shaken by this awful tragedy.

As a student of politics, I can’t help but notice that the Bush White House, scarred badly by the Hurricane Katrina fiasco, seems anxious to show it’s on top of things. Here’s the president this morning after a cabinet meeting:

“Good morning. I just finished a Cabinet meeting. One of the things we discussed was the terrible situation there in Minneapolis. We talked about the fact that the bridge collapsed, and that we in the federal government must respond and respond robustly to help the people there not only recover, but to make sure that lifeline of activity, that bridge, gets rebuilt as quickly as possible.

“To that end, Secretary Peters is in Minneapolis, as well as Federal Highway Administrator Capka. I spoke to Governor Pawlenty and Mayor Rybak this morning. I told them that the Secretary would be there. I told them we would help with rescue efforts, but I also told them how much we are in prayer for those who suffered.”

In other words, the administration is on the case. No fiddling this time around, even First Lady Laura Bush is heading to the area tomorrow (though, apparently, she was scheduled to give a speech at the Republican National Committee summer meeting in Minneapolis this weekend anyway).

All of this sounds encouraging, inasmuch as it sounds like public officials doing what they’re supposed to do after a tragedy like this.

The AP, however, quoted Tony Snow saying something interesting — and far less encouraging.

The Interstate 35W span rated 50 on a scale of 120 for structural stability, White House press secretary Tony Snow said.

“This doesn’t mean there was a risk of failure, but if an inspection report identifies deficiencies, the state is responsible for taking corrective actions,” he said.

Now, to be fair, I didn’t hear the whole context of Snow’s comments, but given the AP account, it sounded a bit like he was already trying to pass the buck. Bush emphasized that the “federal government must respond, and respond robustly,” but Bush’s spokesperson emphasized shortly thereafter, “[T]he state is responsible for taking corrective actions” on deficient bridges.

I really hope Snow was taken out of context here, and that he’s not reflexively shifting the blame onto state officials. But given what we’ve seen of Snow, I wouldn’t be terribly surprised.

snark alert*snark alert*snark alert

just another example of how government at all levels just can’t work. i’m sure if the bridge really needed repair, private enterprise would have leap in to fix it!

snark alert*snark alert*snark alert

  • Hmmm…dozens of cars and trucks go head-long into the Mississippi, and Bush is talking about rescue efforts—a day later? Must be the massed effort to protect the insurance companies and contractors from a 40-year-old bridge that shouldn’t have collapsed in the first place, and the doofus who dreamt up the idea of putting 8 lanes’ worth of traffic into just 4 lanes while simultaneously taking pieces/parts of the bridge out for renovation and repair….

  • Assuming you got the context right – and I haven’t checked it – it sounds like they probably know that some federal official or office or department may have dropped the ball, or a ball, and they’re tired of having to always defend the indefensible.

    It’s quite possible that the state also played a role, or should have, but I don’t know why this always devolves to an “us v. them” argument, instead of a case where everyone steps us and (1) accepts responsibility and (2) works together to both rectify the situation and do what needs to be done to keep it from happening again?

    I hate to break it to Tony, but people really hate it when the two levels of government fight and snipe at each other about whose fault something is, while the people who are affected are left just listening to the fighting and getting no attention to the problems.

  • Wikipedia: On September 27, 2006 the RNC announced that the 2008 Republican National Convention would be held at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota.

    As per BushCo priorities, St. Paul’s twin city–Minneapolis–will get the funding it needs to rebuild the collapsed bridge and interstate. Meanwhile, New Orleans can spit into the wind.

  • CB wrote: “it sounded a bit like he was already trying to pass the buck.”

    Here’s something I’ve never understood. The R’s obviously need a Prez who acts as a stern father figure to them, but then on the other hand they never want that father figure to help them out when there’s trouble.

    My only interpretation is that they really want a drunken abusive father figure who, although he smacks them around and doesn’t support them at all, doesn’t care if they stay out late at night (typically ’cause he’s in a coma).

  • The problem for the Admin is people aren’t just going to forget Katrina/Rita. The more they leap about saying “Lookit me, I’m doing my job!!” the more it highlights the time they didn’t do their job.

  • The Bush administration can run away from this, but their overall neglect for the country’s infrastructure has been criminal.

    Remember the massive blackout in the Northeast in 2003? And of course, the levee failures in New Orleans in 2005? Now we’re seeing the bridges and roads crumble.

    By the time this crew leaves office, this country is going to look like the setting for Mad Max.

  • gg – we know that the Repubs are the “daddy” party, and you have hit on most of the correct adjectives.
    They are the drunken, deadbeat daddy that gets into unnecessary bar brawls party.

  • We talked about the fact that the bridge collapsed.

    That’s fine, but whatever you do, Lil’ Caesar, don’t investigate the fact that the bridge collapsed. But if you have to, because family members of the victims are screaming for an investigation, go ahead and appoint one of your former campaign managers to lead the exposition (or maybe the CEO of the contractor that built the bridge). That way, if the investigation somehow points to the negligence of your poor leadership, you can put the kibosh on that.

    And always remember, Lil’ Bush, if called to testify, insist that you are together with Lil’ Cheney (so you can get your stories straight), in private, not under oath, and for God’s sake, without transcript.

  • I heard this on C-SPAN radio. The quality of some of the questions on this topic was pretty low, especially from “April”. She seemed to think we should send inspectors to every bridge in the country immediately, even though there is not even any guesses as to what they should look for beyond what they already look for. I heard a lot of fear in her questions.
    Tony made the following points. We don’t have enough information to make plans for what the Federal government should do. When we do have such information, like the cause of the collapse, ask me again. Bridge construction and inspection are done by states. For Interstates and Federal highways, inspections are done to Federal standards. He didn’t say, but could have, that when deficiencies are identified, federal dollars help pay for repair or replacement.
    So, he wasn’t distancing the Bush administration from helping, he was simply telling what the procedure is. This contrasts with the levees in NOLA, which are built and maintained by the Army Corps of Engineers directly.

  • I will be shocked if this does not turn out to be another tragic example of “E. Coli Conservatism.” We have trained the sheeple to so reflexively reject taxes, to cry out for smaller government and less spending, that we now govern by triage: does it have to be done (or paid for) today? “Invisible” background activities like maintenance and inspections are underfunded whether in the food supply or our physical infrastructure. When will people ever get over the greedy, selfish, shortsighted obsession with taxation (i.e. investing in the common good of a community)? Will it be in time to save what is left of the country?

  • JKap wrote: “That’s fine, but whatever you do, Lil’ Caesar, don’t investigate the fact that the bridge collapsed.”

    You hit on the same part of Bush’s statement that really bugged me. “We talked about the fact that the bridge collapsed?” How much time did Bush and his cabinet just spend deciding that a bridge actually did collapse?

    I’m really reading too much into his statement, but considering this is the administration that didn’t seem quite sure for days that there was actually a crisis in New Orleans, Bush’s words do not in any way inspire confidence…

  • The real story lesson here is for those who think Bush is merely incompetent and betrays the wholesome values of “small government” Republicans. Add this to the New Orleans levees, the e-coli spinach, the salmanella peanut butter, the accounting scandals, the option-timing scandals, the refinery fires, the smokestack violations, and the huge increase in undocumented workers. What do they all have in common? The low budget enforcement agencies knew about the problems and did NOTHING!!!!

  • My particular favorite part of the coverage of this horrible tragedy is how the news now feels my first thought during any crisis is “oh noes, the turrists,” and that they must immediately inform me that it in fact was only just a horrible tragedy.

  • What zeitgeist said.

    Conservatives will, I am certain, be found to have put off the funding of the repair of this bridge and others, so that they could funnel cash to Ted Stevens for his bridge to nowhere (and a host of other Republican porkpies).

    And of course the deaths on bridges will be a minor blip compared to the deaths caused by all the polluters that the Republicans routinely protect from the meddlesome liberals.

  • i know you can’t believe what you hear in the msm, but the report this morning was that the bridge had been inspected twice in the past two years with very minor deficiencies (any 40 year old bridge will have some deficiencies). it sounded to me that the state had done their job correctly and the bridge was safe based on those inspections. i don’t understand how tony can say it only got 50 out of 120 points????

  • gg wrote: You hit on the same part of Bush’s statement that really bugged me. “We talked about the fact that the bridge collapsed?” How much time did Bush and his cabinet just spend deciding that a bridge actually did collapse?

    Maybe he actually used the word “fact” because this is the first time in his “reign” that they can’t lie about something or reinterpret it for their own benefit. Unlike everything else that the admin spins, this one can’t be spun. Even Joe Public can turn on CNN for 30 seconds and realize, “Gee, a bridge fell down.” No matter how good a liar Tony Snow is, he can’t repackage this one.

  • Before the bodies were even counted the Prez and the GOP began blaming the Democrats for not passing a spending bill which would have save the bridge. That’s a federal spending bill. Unmentioned: the Republican governor has repeatedly vetoed Democratic and bipartisan spending bills which really might have made a difference to that bridge and its victims.

    Katrina compounded. Heckuva smear job, Shrub, you butt wipe.

  • I notice that Bush wants us to think he cares, but didn’t actually bother calling the governor until this morning, even though he heard about the collapse while he was eating dinner last night.

    That infamous Bush reaction time, I guess. I know the local officials were pretty busy last evening, but I bet they would have had a minute or two for Mr. Bush to say “Help is on the way.” If he actually thought of them as people, and actually wanted to help out after a calamity.

    Instead he went to bed.

  • now biggerbox, lets be fair. he keeps getting interrupted before he can finish My Pet Goat, and this time he really, really wanted to see how it ends!

  • This might not be the Fed’s fault.

    1. There was some steel stress reported by the inspectors a few years ago. Stress is a precondition to stress cracking. They were driving piles adjacent to the bridge for a bridge widening during the past week. Depending on the ground conditions, pile driving transmits vibration to adjacent structures. It is not uncommon to be able to feel the ground shake from pile driving operations well over a quarter mile away. Vibration from pile driving can very well add stress to adjacent steel and concrete structures. In extreme conditions it can also move concrete foundations.

    2. The LOCAL government has just got done spending 9-digit dollars of infastructure money to build a new stadium for the Twins. Since they didn’t raise 9-digit dollars specifically for the stadium it is clear that they took it out of the infrastructure fund. Since they started work on ‘the bridge’ as soon as the stadium it is highly likely that ‘the bridge’ is what they postponed for the Twins.

  • First off I have been unable to escape the wall to wall bridge coverage since last night. It’s a huge deal and deserves attention but to hear it you would think the whole city sunk in a giant hole.

    As far as W goes I have a message for him and his administration. For the love of god stay away! Send a check and then piss off before you screw something up.

    As far as the money goes it may have something to to with Rep. Jim Oberstar who chairs the House Transportation Comittee. Purely speculation on my part.

    Here is the story on the condition. It was 40 years into a 50 year life. It was rated as having issues as far back as 1990. The bridge was not going to be replaced until 2010 or later (unless it collapsed). Our Gov. who is the McCain for emporer chairman is a neocon lackey shitball. It is far more important to him that he forward his career and never ever ever raise a tax of any kind.

    On the upside the MN gas tax hasn’t been increased in a decade and I can renew my licence tabs much more cheaply than a few years ago. On the downside a goddamn interstate bridge collapsed at rush hour in the middle of Minneapolis!

    Minnesota has been racing toward Alabama since Jessee Ventura and the MN GOP is driving the bus. Stupid greedy fucktards.

    Thanks all. I feel better now.

  • The most disturbing thing I’ve heard about all this was from Craig Crawford, who said the dirty little secret is that Congress knows there are a lot of bad bridges out there, but it’s cheaper just to wait for them to collapse and start from scratch than to try to repair what’s already there, lives be damned. They can toss in earmarks for all sorts of pet projects but crucial infrastructure improvements doesn’t seem to interest lawmakers of either party no matter who is in the majority. It is an outrage.

  • I will be shocked if this does not turn out to be another tragic example of “E. Coli Conservatism.” We have trained the sheeple to so reflexively reject taxes, to cry out for smaller government and less spending, that we now govern by triage: does it have to be done (or paid for) today? “Invisible” background activities like maintenance and inspections are underfunded whether in the food supply or our physical infrastructure. When will people ever get over the greedy, selfish, shortsighted obsession with taxation (i.e. investing in the common good of a community)? Will it be in time to save what is left of the country?

    You hit the nail right on the head, Zeitgeist.

  • to everyone thanks for the concern but we’re not blaming Bush on this one…the bridge was built like so many projects back in the mid 60’s cheap, light and strong by the lowest bidder.

    @ Bridge Builder:

    1. Were we sitting in traffic on, driving across and riding under the same bridge for the past few months? There was no widening going on near the base of the Caisons or even at the roadbed itself. If there were it would have been in the bedrock of the river bed and not on dry land….that is unless you have some kind of strange engineers vision that permits you to see invisible pilings being invisibly pounded into the ground that I missed on my commute on River Road West under the bridge on Tuesday.

    2. the local government along with the state governmnet have approved a tax increase only in the the downtown MPLS area and in Hennepin county to pay for the new privately owned Ballpark. Yes a tax increase to pay for a private ballpark, but not for a public right of way…it was not taken out of the infrastructure money simply becasue there was none available to use for it.

    Were noting Gov Pawlenty’s veto of a bipartisan bill that would have increased the gas tax to pay for specific road improvemnet including retrofit and reinforcing of Bridges such as the 35W bridge.

    Also noting the irony that the Bridge was currently being fixed by matching funds from the Federal gov’t and state gov’t, or should I say “lack” of federal matching funds due to lack of federal tax receipts to cover needed infrastrcture. Hence proposed gas tax increase to pay for repairs…

  • “People pinned and dying in the wreckage of the Interstate 35W bridge Wednesday night asked rescue workers to say their goodbyes to their families, Minneapolis Police Chief Tim Dolan said.”

    God help them.

    We’re spending $155,000 a minute in Iraq.

    For what?

  • Talk about playing the “Blame Game” That’s all you whiners have been doing. This countries infrastructure has been crumbling since the 70’s, through Democratic and Republican administrations. Stop pointing fingers at your opposing political party and put the blame squarely where it belongs, on the do-nothings we have elected into office.

  • I hearby nominate the American Way of Life for primary blame. We all know how the country loves to build it, but hates to maintain it! We love the stories about contractor kickbacks to crooked state highway departments. Build good, yaaaay !! Maintain bad, booooo !!

    Congrats America, you have the infrastructure (and the government) you deserve,

  • I think this is hitting a national nerve because we’re spending 6 billion dollars a month on this Iraq war. Imagine how many new replacement bridges you could fund…no need to imagine actually. One can calculate based on the Bridge To Nowhere cost of ~$250 million (and these would be damn nice bridges!). That’s 24 bridges a month, 280 bridges a year.

    The best part? All of that bridge money goes into the U.S. economy.

  • Much of this countries infrastructure is old, and in need of repair or replacement. That costs money, state and federal.

    In the 50’s-70’s, 3% of GDP was spent on development/repair of infrastructure. Dropped to under 2% in the 80’s and 90’s, and in 2006 was at 0.7%.

    On the bridge, funding comes in part from the Federal Highway System. The funds available come from the excise tax on gasoline which is 18.4 cents per gallon. As a percent of gas pices, the tax has dropped from 10% in the 50’s when the program started, to 6% today. In 2005, congress tried to increase the tax by 4 cents, but this was threatened to be vetoed by Bush. Today, the FHS has a deficit of 2 billion (23 billion surplus in 2001).

    Seems like we wait until bridges collapse before deciding to rebuild them while we earmark funds to build bridges to nowhere. This bridge was known to have a serious design defect where a single failure would cause collapse. There was inadequate redundancy in the design, and this bridge would not have been allowed to be built today. Forecasting the probability of fatigue failure on a 40 year old structure is simply educated guesswork at best. The fact that no plans to reinforce, or rebuild it based on the 2001 report is disturbing. Americans are at risk from falling bridges, exploding gas lines, failing dams, etc., yet prefer to spend the money elsewhere.

  • From the second item on today’s mini report:

    This year two Democratic Minnesotan legislatures passed a $4.18 billion transportation package. Minnesota’s Republican governor vetoed it because he had taken a no-new-taxes pledge, Grover Norquist-style. That’s just what conservative politicians do. The original bill would have put over $8 billion toward highways, city, and county roads, and transit over the next decade. The bill he let passed spent much less.”

  • Interesting . . .

    I don’t claim Fristian certainty. MSM reported pile driving operations as a quote from the DOT. Also the infrastructure fund diversion.

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