President Bush did an impressive job last night of laying out a sweeping vision for the rebuild of the Gulf Coast, offering a "pledge" to the American people that the federal government will "do what it takes, we will stay as long as it takes, to help citizens rebuild their communities and their lives. And all who question the future of the Crescent City need to know there is no way to imagine America without New Orleans, and this great city will rise again," he said.
I watched the speech on ABC and in interviews with survivors relocated to the Astrodome after it, try as he might, the reporter was unable to get a single person to criticize Bush's speech, doubt his sincerity, veracity or commitment to the people of the region - it was quite funny actually, and anchorman Ted Koppel came back on and said something along the lines of, "well, if that's an indication of the nation's reaction to the speech, the president has accomplished much!"
One of things a president is best equipped to do is rally the nation behind a cause — to focus attention and create momentum for that cause — and Bush did this exceptionally well behind the War on Terror following 9/11, reasonably well for the war in Iraq (at least at the time), and appears to have now done quite well in the wake of Katrina.
But we also know that, besides being the right thing to do, people — including presidents — don't always do the right thing until they are forced to do so by pressure of one kind or another: in the case of Katrina, the pressure came from near-universal condemnation of the government's preparedness and immediate response to the storm and its appalling aftermath. His approval ratings were at their lowest, the images and stories from the scene were stark and visceral, and for Bush the options came down pretty much to all or nothing, and nothing was no longer a viable option.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Nancy
Read between the lines, Eric: Smirk openly promised to jack up corporate welfare to Big Business & multinational corporations like Exxon, as well as throwing yet more bid-free opportunities to fiscally screw the government to his buddies at Halliburton & Bechtel. Just who do you think the "businesses" he proposes to rebuild are - the local corner mom'npop? Bush is all hot air & empty words. His speech (written by someone else) means zilch except more screwing the American public to pay for his mistakes & failures, & the venality & greed of his backers & administration.
2 - Matthew T. Sussman
I will defer judgment on last night's speech to expert USA analyst Cindy Sheehan. She seems to know everything about everything.
3 - Janice Druckman
Amen!!!
4 - Eric Olsen
was our dear Nancy channeling the sainted Cindy?
Bush's speech was only an ancillary element of the post anyway - perhaps I shall sulk
5 - Georgio
Eric ...the bush speech was OK ..it gave the ppl of New Orleans hope especially the dumb mayor whose mouth was watering at the thought of all that money he is going to get his hands on {he thinks )..he needs money to pay the police force because the city had no money so what where they doing down there living from week to week as to how many tickets where given out to get a payroll but what I heard bush say is they where going to get money to pay for overtime.Not the reguler payroll But this is nothing compared to what I heard after the speech by Ted Koppel..he interviewed members of the 9/11 commission and what they said made me mad as hell they said that the recommendations they made have not been implemented and if they had been most of the life's could have been saved ...most of all was the communication system and the lack of a central command ..to be plain about it Bush has not done anything to make this country safer and is not prepared to handle any disaster,..what the fuck has he been doing for 4 years...Americans wake up ..we are being led by a very stupid man..I am being kind !
6 - Eric Olsen
What? ... sorry, I was asleep.
Yes, I saw that too: maybe now after strike 2 it will actually get done. 3 strikes and you're out
7 - Eric Olsen
really, seriously, no kidding: does anyone think proclaiming Bush is stupid (etc etc) for the 10,000th time have any actual meaning anymore. Does anyone actually think ANYone is going to sit up and say, "Hey, thanks for that - I can't imagine what I had been thinking for the last 5 years. I'll bet he's evil too!"
8 - Joe
You're just saying that because you drank the Koolaid!
/irony
9 - Joe
Scratch that, the closing tag should be:
/smartass
10 - Matthew T. Sussman
Visit my blog ... x 9997
Visit my blog ... x 9998
Visit my blog ... x 9999
...Oh, you mean that doesn't work?
11 - Georgio
ok Eric let me use other terms for bush
. DULL suggests a slow or sluggish mind such as results from disease, depression, or shock . DENSE implies a thickheaded imperviousness to ideas . CRASS suggests a grossness of mind precluding discrimination or delicacy . DUMB applies to an exasperating obtuseness or lack of comprehension .
Take your pick...
1 a : slow of mind : OBTUSE b : given to unintelligent decisions or acts : acting in an unintelligent or careless manner c : lacking intelligence or reason : BRUTISH
3 : marked by or resulting from unreasoned thinking or acting : SENSELESS
4 a : lacking interest or point b : VEXATIOUS, EXASPERATING
- stu·pid·ly adverb
- stu·pid·ness noun
synonyms STUPID, DULL, DENSE, CRASS, DUMB mean lacking in power to absorb ideas or impressions. STUPID implies a slow-witted or dazed state of mind that may be either congenital or temporary
12 - JELIEL
"Bush's greatest failures [...] has been his blindness to the need for exactly the kind of sweeping, heroic, "do what it takes" national effort behind weaning the national transportation infrastructure off of its oil dependency"
It's not his failure; it's his greatest accomplishment for him. The accomplishment being to line the pockets of his oil-men buddies and armaments industry buddies. He's made them richer beyond their dreams. That's where he'll most likely never change.
Hell a month ago or so he gave the energy industry a 14 billion dollar tax cut. They already make perverse amounts of profits and they get tax cuts. So much for education and healthcare for the poor. Mr. Compassionate president my ass.
13 - Eric Olsen
I like "vexatious"
I realize I am not nearly anti-Bush enough for the rabid, foaming loathers, and I am not nearly enough of a rooter for the supporters
14 - JR
And you are too forgiving of failure for those of us who would just like to see the country run better.
But, you said yourself, "three strikes and you're out"; so presumably after Bush's next major fuck-up you'll support whatever steps necessary to get him out of the way of solving this country's problems (like energy dependence).
15 - Nancy
"Vexatious" is excellent. Best recent use of a word here on BC.
16 - Eric Olsen
he's still good at what he's good at, which is what those who despise him don't seem to be able to see
17 - Eric Berlin
Very interesting vector on this piece, EO.
I'm very doubtful that energy policy will be next for several reasons, though I'd love nothing better than to see it be so. We just had a massive energy bill pass (several months ago, I think?) that was heavy on old school natural resource depletion and very light on developing the technologies and resources you rightly mention.
I find it hard to believe that any reasonable person could think that a massive investment in alternative fuels and emerging automotive technologies would yield nothing less than a massive return: geopolitically, environmentally, jobs for domestic economy, etc.
Now, Bush: I didn't see the speech, but I agree that these moments have, over the course of his presidency, been his strength. It remains to be seen whether this particular moment is Too Little Too Late or the beginning of a second term resurgence.
I suspect that intense ideological storm clouds are forming, and that the downpour will center upon the the '06 elections.
18 - Eric Olsen
thanks EB, I think the plan was so massive and intense very specifically to MAKE sure it wasn't perceived as too little too late: "We will rebuild yo ass, pay for it, and wipe it too. Okay?"
My thought is that if enough pressure builds from rising gas prices (which may have already peaked), then he will have to do something drastic again
19 - Eric Berlin
Some conservatives are already balking at the sums being discussed, and I think there's going to be a lot of contention about where and how the money is used i.e. Opportunity Zones and so forth. And of course both sides are going to have lots and lots of We Have to Unite / Don't Politicize / Blame Game, etc.
Man, I hope gas prices don't continue to rise. But maybe the great Adam Carolla is right: jack up prices via taxes to $5 / gallon now, which will drastically decrease driving (and traffic!). Use the money to develop alt forms of fuel and transportation.
Voila!
20 - Eric Olsen
that's how they handle it in Europe, but their entire way of life isn't built around the automobile like ours is
21 - Eric Berlin
And they've invested in dynamite infrastructure and transportation systems.
22 - Leslie
Eric, Just what is Bush good at? Besides PR and I'm not even sure he's good at that. Maybe the American public is just too short sighted and uncaring about whatever issue is just not right under their noses at the moment. We don't remember what happened yesterday let alone a week ago. If it doesn't affect our own pocket we just don't seem to care. Until the new media with its sensationalism rams it down our throats. Sometimes I just get so discouraged. When will we wake up?
23 - RJ
But maybe the great Adam Carolla is right: jack up prices via taxes to $5 / gallon now, which will drastically decrease driving (and traffic!). Use the money to develop alt forms of fuel and transportation.
Voila!
This would lead to people driving a lot less, and that includes leisure travel. The hotel industry suffers a major hit.
Voila!
Because people are paying 5 times more for a neccesity than they used to pay just 6 or 7 years ago, they have less money to spend on other items. This reduced spending leads to less profits from retailers. Their stock prices go down. A stock market crash!
Voila!
All goods must be transported from their place of manufacture to the place where they are eventually sold. These items are transported mostly via trucks. Trucks run on gasoline. Gasoline now costs a LOT more. Therefore, shipping companies much charge more for their services. Therefore, the manufacturers must pay more in order to ship their products, and have to increase prices in order to remain profitable. Retailers now must pay spend more money to get goods from manufacturers, and in order to remain profitable, they must increase the prices they charge consumers. Consumers are now faced with higher prices on almost everything they buy. Inflation sets in!
Voila!
Because the public is spending less money on consumer durables, those companies that produce such products are unable to make a profit at the status quo. They lay off workers in order to reduce expenditures enough to remain in the black. Increased unemployment!
Voila!
Rising inflation coupled with rising unemployment levels leads the macroeconomy to contract instead of expanding. Recession!
Voila!
:-/
24 - Eric Olsen
Leslie, media sensationalism is nothing new
Then there's all that, RJ. I'd say a Marshall Plan on alternatives and especially renewables is the way to go as we ween ourselves off oil slowly but surely. Shocks are bad
25 - Eric Berlin
Or a massive investment into alternative fuels and new transportation systems / infrastructure drives an expansion of the U.S. economy, new and high paying jobs for workers, a new paradigm for Middle East relations, and a marked improvement in the global ecosystem.
Voila!