Finally Some Good News For Republicans

The President's approval rating has climbed in two polls to:

- 45 percent in a CNN/USA Today/Gallup poll, up from 40 percent in a poll taken a week ago.

- 45 percent in a Fox News poll, up from a 41 percent approval rating in a mid-month poll.

Read the story here.

This is good news for Republicans at a time when former House Majority Leader Tom Delay is under indictment for an election law violation in Texas and Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist is being investigated for a stock trade.

DeLay Court Appearance Set for Late Oct. AP

Frists' HCA Now Under Investigation by SEC AP

However, the Dems may have some troubles of their own as it is being reported that Dem Senate Leader Harry Reid arranged for a grant that is involved in indictment of two Las Vegas pastors. Read the story here.

It's going to be an interesting political season.

The Big Texas Indictment

Michelle Malkin has been posting all day on the indictment of Tom Delay. To learn more about this, read her running post here.

It's a sure bet that this indictment will be a hot topic on the TV talk shows for quite a while.

However, the effect on upcoming elections is unknown. My guess is that most people will chalk the indictment up as more hardball politics regardless of what happens to Delay.

FEMA Gone Wild

I heard Ann Coulter tonight on Sean Hannity's radio program talking about FEMA and it's misuse of fire fighters who volunteered to help in the aftermath of Katrina. It seems that FEMA required that the fire fighters take an eight-hour course on sexual harassment and equal opportunity employment procedures before they could start helping.

Then to make matters worse, these highly trained firefighters were only given the task of passing out brochures.

Two Indiana firefighters were so upset that their skills would not be used, that they left for home after 24 hours.

A link to this incredible story was posted on AnnCoulter.com. Read the story here.

Where has common sense gone?

Funny Girl

This Drudge post about Barbra Streisand declaring a "GLOBAL WARMING EMERGENCY" is a classic.

It also includes some sobering facts that you can use when someone starts yapping about Global Warming and Hurricanes.

Cindy Sheehan Arrested

WASHINGTON - Cindy Sheehan was arrested while protesting outside the White House.

It is unfortunate that the following quote from a woman whose husband died in Iraq, was buried at the bottom of an AP article about Ms. Sheehan. (read here)

Mitzy Kenny of Ridgeley, W.Va. - "I would like to say to Cindy Sheehan and her supporters: Don't be a group of unthinking lemmings..."

Ms. Kenny's opinion of anti-war demonstrators - (they) "can affect the war in a really negative way. It gives the enemy hope."

Blogging Hurricane Rita - Day 3

Houston, TX, Sept. 24, 2005 -- Members of Texas Task Force 1 Urban Search and Rescue plan their strategy in the Reliant Arena where they had set up a Base of Operations just hours after Hurricane Rita made landfall. In the background are some of the many tractor trailer rigs that were pre-postioned in the Reliant Park parking lot so that they could be dispatched quickly as soon as it was safe. Bob McMillan/ FEMA Photo

It seems the planning for Rita was better than for Katrina. We can only hope that things will be even better for future disasters. I found the following quote that offers some hope,

"And long after our Gulf region is rebuilt, we must remember this renewed spirit of selfless service for the less fortunate and work toward making sure that every American has the opportunity to live hopeful lives..." Sen. Blanche Lincoln (Dem) of Arkansas. Read the story here.

Bravo to Sen. Lincoln. This is the spirit that made our country great and I hope will re-unite the country. The "blame game" must stop and Republicans and Democrats must work together.

Blogging Hurricane Rita - Day 2

President George W. Bush addresses the media during a visit to FEMA headquarters Friday, Sept. 23, 2005. White House photo by Paul Morse


9/23/2005 - Rita is still a Cat 4 storm but it appears that it will not hit Galveston, TX directly. More on this later.

(Latest Post is at the bottom.)

Rita NOAA loop.

Breaking News....Fox News is reporting that the water is "gushing" into the 9th Ward of New Orleans. That ward is one of the poorest in the city and was previously flooded by Katrina. It already had been evacuated for Katrina. Fox News says that The Army Corps of Engineers is "investigating". Read an AP story about work on the levees here.

10:35 AM - It's confirmed, the 9th Ward in New Orleans is flooding. Read the story here. This is very bad considering Rita has not even reached land yet.

3:35 PM - More on the flooding in the 9th Ward in New Orleans. Read about it here.

Even though Rita will not hit New Orleans directly, it seems that flooding will add more misery to the already storm damaged city.

10:32 PM - The eye of Rita is expected to pass somewhere Beaumont, Texas and Port Arthur, LA in the next few hours. Read an AP story about this here.

Shepard Smith of Fox News is reporting live in Beaumont. As he was on the air earlier he was blown over even though the full fury of Rita is still hours away. Fox News is all over this story with reporters all over the area.

11:53 PM - Three buildings are on fire in downtown Galveston. The fires are in an historic district where the Marti Gras is held. Read about it here. Fox News reported that many of the buildings is the area of the fires are made of wood.

NOAA Hurricane RITA Public Advisory - 9/24/2005 12 AM...."EYE OF MAJOR HURRICANE RITA WOBBLING TOWARD LANDFALL NEAR THE LOUISIANA/TEXAS BORDER...STRONG WINDS AND HEAVY RAINS BATTERING SOUTHERN LOUISIANA AND SOUTHEASTERN TEXAS...MAXIMUM SUSTAINED WINDS REMAIN NEAR 120 MPH...WITH HIGHER GUSTS. RITA IS A DANGEROUS CATEGORY THREE HURRICANE ON THE SAFFIR-SIMPSON SCALE. LITTLE CHANGE IN STRENGTH IS EXPECTED PRIOR TO LANDFALL."

9/24/2005 12:21 AM - Rita has moved East a bit and is expected to reach land first at Cameron / Port Arthur, LA shortly. Here is the latest NOAA radar for Lake Charles, LA. Geraldo Rivera of Fox News is in Port Arthur, LA now in a closed Holiday Inn. He and his crew had to retreat from the sea wall.

Breaking News...1:00 AM - Fox News is reporting that the NOAA is reporting that the eyewall of Rita has reached land at Cameron, LA. Read the story about this on MSNBC.com here.

2:19 AM - I'm still up and flipping between Fox News, CNN and MSNBC. Rita is still hammering the Texas and Louisiana Gulf Coast areas but slowing somewhat. She is moving slowly and bringing much rain. The damage won't be fully known probably till the morning. Flooding is expected as Rita moves inland. New Orleans did not get hit directly by the storm but there was rain. Unfortunately, several of the wards that were flooded because of Katrina, flooded again.

I'm very tired and will be going to bed. Tomorrow, I'll start a new post on Rita titled Blogging Hurricane Rita - Day 3.

Blogging Hurricane Rita

Here we go again. Hurricane Rita is heading towards the Gulf as a Cat 4. Sound familiar?

I will be following Rita and adding to this post today. I will start a new post tomorrow (9-23-2005), Blogging Hurricane Rita - Day 2.

Listed are some links to Galveston news and Blogs also following Rita:

Liberty's Blog
Galveston County Daily News
Smoke on the Water
Topix.net Galveston
Houston-Galveston Area Emergency Blogger Network
Guidry Online News Station
http://blogs.chron.com/stormwatchers/

(The most current update is on the bottom)


8:46 PM CDT - Rita NOAA loop.



Houston, TX, September 21, 2005 (From FEMA) -- Traffic is heavy on the Houston freeways as people begin to flee the on-coming hurricane Rita. The recent landfall of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans had people scrambling to prepare for Hurricane Rita. Photo by Ed Edahl/FEMA

Sour Grapes

In limp attempts to rise from the ashes for the 2008 Presidential Race, John Kerry and John Edwards jumped on the "blame Bush first for Katrina" bandwagon.
Read the article titled Kerry, Edwards Blast Bush Over Katrina.

Blah, Blah, Blah, Blah.

Now, Rita, another Bush blow is heading for Texas. Where does "W" find the time?

Helping The Poor: Bush v. Clinton

The recent opinion piece by Bill O'Reilly titled Poor Behavior is one of his best. It clearly lays out the facts that Dems continue to distort: George W. Bush has a better record helping the poor than Bill Clinton.

Whether or not you like Bill O'Reilly, this is a must read if you want to know the truth.

Never Forget - The Heros of New Orleans

HURRICANE KATRINA (FOR RELEASE) NEW ORLEANS (Aug. 30, 2005) - Coast Guard Petty Officer 2nd Class Scott D. Rady, 34, of Tampa, Fla., give the signal to hoist a pregnant woman from her apartment here today. In all, the Coast Guard rescued 11 survivors from the apartment building. Rady is a rescue swimmer sent from Clearwater, Fla., to help aid in search and rescue efforts in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. U.S. Coast Guard photograph by Petty Officer 2nd Class NyxoLyno Cangemi.


This Coast Guard story and picture I found tells it all. Thank God for the brave men and women who saved countless lives in New Orleans. Never forget.

Cindy Sheehan to Bush: "Pull our troops out of occupied New Orleans and Iraq"

From Cindy Sheehan's post at MichaelMoore.com

"George Bush needs to stop talking, admit the mistakes of his all around failed administration, pull our troops out of occupied New Orleans and Iraq, and excuse his self from power. The only way America will become more secure is if we have a new administration that cares about Americans even if they don't fall into the top two percent of the wealthiest. "

Unbelievable. I am speechless.

Fly Over - Karl Rove Where Were You?

Now we know why the President did a fly over of New Orleans after the hurricane and didn't jump out into the flood waters.

Karl Rove had kidney stones and was unavailable to give Bush political advice. Read the New York Daily News story here.

Dr. Goodheart

Thanks to Powerline for pointing me to the blog Dr. Goodheart. This is a blog by Stanley Tillinghast, M.D., a retired caardiologist who with his wife are helping in the Katrina relief effort. It's a good one from a front line vantage point. It also has plenty of pictures.

I recommend it.

Landrieu Finger Pointing The Wrong Way

After watching a heated exchange between Chris Wallace and Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La) yesterday on Fox News Sunday, I concluded that Dems aren't interested in the facts about what happened in the aftermath of Katrina or in the truth about how our federal government works.

Landrieu had thrown the entire blame for the disaster at New Orleans after storm at the feet of the Bush administration and FEMA in a speech on the Senate floor. Wallace had shown the footage of Landrieu's outburst where she called FEMA's response "incompetent and insulting".

Wallace asked several pointed questions related to whether or not the state or local government shared some responsibility. She angrily replied that she did not want to play the blame game. Wallace called her on that one by exclaiming that she herself started the blame game - but only against the Bush administration.

It seems Sen. Landrieu and other Dems will not look at truth or admit truth.

Because of the way our Founding Fathers set up our country with the Constitution, the Federal Government was created by the states and they gave it a very few enumerated powers - national defense and taxation being the most significant.

All other power is reserved for the states. For example, the state and local government (a creature of state government) would be responsible for responding to disasters. The Federal Government can assist and provide aide only if asked by the states. Even the National Guard under disaster situations is under then control of the Governor, unless she or he agrees to let the President take charge. If you don't believe me, go ask any high school civics teacher.

In the awful situation in New Orleans, the Governor or Mayor did not ask for federal help in time - and in fact Governor Blanco has not given control of the National Guard to the President, fearing Martial law.

Also, another fact is that Governor Blanco would not give permission to the Salvation Army or the Red Cross to come into the city to bring food, water and medical care to those stranded at the Super Dome and the Convention Center.

To make matters worse, reports have come out that the Mayor Ray Nagin never sent the hundreds of city busses - now sitting in water - to evacuate those without transportation after he had issued an order to evacuate. Landrieu's response to Wallace's question about this was limp and laughable. She argued, in defense of the Mayor, that it's difficult to get people to work on Sunday, let alone evacuate before a storm.

The hard truth: The Mayor and Governor were not up to the job.

After the 9-11 attack, New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani and Governor Pataki took charge; asked for and got federal help and they worked hand-in-hand with other officials in a heroic way and many lives were saved. After the four massive hurricanes in Florida last year, Jeb Bush took charge, also asked for and got Federal help. The result: Florida is being rebuilt and it's economy is thriving.

Another truth; the Dems and the ACLU would be the first ones calling for the impeachment of the President if he ignored the Constitution, sent in federal troops, side-stepped the mayor of New Orleans and the governor of Louisiana and had became a dictator.

The solution for the future of Louisiana is simple - the voters should evaluate the way their officials have handed the catastrophe and vote to keep them in or throw them out of office.

Sorry, but that is how America works. The Founders wanted a separation of powers and that's what we have. In my view, our republic, a federal system, is the best form of government. The only other alternative is to live under a dictator.

Let's rebuild the lives and buildings in Louisiana, with God's help, and stop pointing fingers - especially in the wrong direction.

Mike Brown Handed A Sand Bag

The FEMA chief was sent back to Washington by Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff.

Chertoff told a news conference: "I have directed Mike Brown to return to administering FEMA nationally."

Thus, Mr. Brown appears to be on the road to being a scape goat.

Again, another sad event. I don't agree with Michelle Malkin that Mike Brown should be fired. (See her post today along those lines)

First, consider this that I found on FEMA's site:

"FEMA's mission...is to lead the effort to prepare the nation for all hazards and effectively manage federal response and recovery efforts following any national incident. FEMA also initiates proactive mitigation activities, trains first responders, and manages the National Flood Insurance Program and the U.S. Fire Administration...

Often FEMA works in partnership with other organizations that are part of the nation's emergency management system. These partners include state and local emergency management agencies, 27 federal agencies and the American Red Cross."

Wow, what a mandate and what responsibility! But guess what? All these wondrous things are to be done with around 2,600 full time employees and "nearly" 4,000 standby disaster assistance employees

Then, consider that Hurricane Katrina obliterated an area roughly the size of Great Britain.

Maybe Mike Brown should go. Just like the poor sap that was handed a sand bag - just before he was pushed out of the boat.

Jane Fonda's Vegetable Oil Express Slides To A Halt

Remember Jane Fonda's planned bus tour to protest the Iraq war? See my previous post titled Jane, John and Dick and The Vegetable Oil Express? Now, Fox News is reporting that Ms. Fonda is canceling her bus protest tour scheduled for next March. Read the article about this here.

Why is Ms. Fonda doing this? The article reports that the tour is being cancelled because Hanoi Jane didn't want to be a distraction to the Cindy Sheehan bus trip.

That sounds like a limp excuse to me. Maybe the reason is that Jane ran out of vegetable oil.

Update - The Sean Penn Story

Several readers have added comments to my previous post about Sean Penn titled Sean Penn Almost To The Rescue that point to articles that give a different slant to this story. It seems that Penn and his crew did help some people. Read this story in the New York Daily News titled Sean Penn gets into rescue act.

A tip of the hat to Ralph of Answered Prayer for pointing out this New York Daily News story.

The Katrina Mess: The Blame Stops There?

Dems and liberals and even some Republicans are jumping on the bandwagon to blame the feds and the President for what they say is the slow response to crisis situations caused by Katrina. Following are several things to consider.

Much, if not most of the responsibility for disaster planning and relief, may rest at the local and state level. The Captain of Captain's Quarters has a very informative post today about this. He points out that there is a "dawning realization of the massive failure of Louisiana and New Orleans to initiate their own disaster plans and to use their available assets to maintain control in New Orleans." This post is a must read.

Another thing to consider: Is it the appropriate role of the Federal government to prevent looting and violence? I've heard people say: "Why didn't Bush send Federal troops to stop the terrible violence in New Orleans after Katrina hit?" The answer to this one is simple: There is a Federal statute prohibiting the use of Federal armed forces, with a very few exceptions, for law enforcement within the United States. That statue is called the Posse Comitatus Act. You can read about that here in the Wikipedia encyclopedia.

The Federal law reads as follows:

Section 1385. Use of Army and Air Force as posse comitatus.
Whoever, except in cases and under circumstances expressly authorized by the Constitution or Act of Congress, willfully uses any part of the Army or the Air Force as a posse comitatus or otherwise to execute the laws shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than two years, or both.

The Department of Defense included the Navy and Marine Corps by regulation. Read a military fact sheet on the Posse Comitatus Act here.

Can you imagine the howling of the ACLU and liberal Dems if Bush ignored the Constitution and Federal law and sent in the troops into rioting neighborhoods in New Orleans with guns blazing?

In any case, as I've commented before, it is sad that the blame game is being played now - especially while there is so much to do right now to help those in need.

Sean Penn Almost To The Rescue

A tip of the hat to Ginnis, who comments and is a regular reader of this blog, for pointing out a story about actor and political activist Sean Penn's failed attempt to help in the New Orleans crisis.

It seems that Penn and his entourage attempted to launch a boat in New Orleans with the purpose of rescuing victims. However, when the boat started to sink, Penn, who was wearing what some said was a white flak jacket, was seen frantically bailing water from the boat with a red plastic cup.

Then to make matters worse, the boat's motor would not start. This forced the "crew" to to use paddles to make their way down the flooded streets.

Someone watching the botched launch of the boat full of Penn's entourage (which included a photographer) chided Admiral Penn: "How are you going to get any people in that thing?"

Read the full story here.

Penn should stick to acting. Maybe in the future he will be a little slower to criticize officials and professionals that are trying to do the right thing.

Or maybe the President should appoint Penn the new head of FEMA to replace embattled Director Michael Brown.


Update - 08-06-2005: Michelle Malkin checked in today on Penn's mission in her post titled JOHN WAYNE VS. JEFF SPICOLI. Check it out.

Bush Proves That Telling The Truth Is The Best Policy

As the military rolled and flew into New Orleans to the rescue of the people caught in the city, pollsters measured how the public viewed the government's response to the crisis.

In an ABC News/Washington Post poll, 67% of those surveyed felt that the Feds were unprepared for the disaster, 75% blamed State and local governments, while only 44% blamed President Bush.

Read the full story about this here.

It is surprising that the President fared so well in the poll considering how he has been attacked by his detractors over Katrina. See my previous post titled Hurricane Bush.

I believe President Bush fared well in the survey because he didn't try to make excuses when chaos reigned in New Orleans. He simply stated the obvious that the federal response was "not acceptable".

Other politicians should take note of how telling the truth in the face of criticism is the best response.

Breaking News... Chief Justice Rehnquist Dies

Chief Supreme Court Justice Rehnquist died tonight in his home of cancer. Rehnquist was appointed to the Supreme Court in the early 70s by Richard Nixon. This leaves two open seats on the Supreme Court.

Hearings will start soon for the opening created by the retirement of Justice O'Connor and the feeling is that Bush's appointee, John Roberts will be easily confirmed. After Rehnquist's death, that may not be the case.

There will be much speculation over who Bush will appoint next. The fear that the balance of the court will change will ignite the opposition to anyone Bush appoints.

The battle begins.

The "No Right Answer" Game

A friend of mine who is in the military pointed me to an article titled "The Wrong Army" from Military.com. I think it's great. The author is Jeff Edwards who is a retired U.S. Navy Chief Petty Officer.

Mr. Edwards describes a game that is played by politicians and journalists against the military. He calls the game the "No Right Answer" game. You can read it here.


A tip of the hat to Lance, who comments frequently on this blog.

Hurricane Bush

Sadly, the "blame game" has started about the cause and responses to Katrina. Following are some of the headlines I found that show this "finger pointing". Perhaps Hurricane Katrina should be renamed Hurricane Bush. To me, this is as ugly as looting and should stop.

Bush on defensive over Katrina response
New Orleans Mayor Fumes Over Slow Response
U.S. car culture is running on empty in storms wake
White House Backpedals on Flood Control
Newsview: Politicians Failed Storm Victims
Budget cuts delayed New Orleans flood control work
New bankruptcy law a problem for Katrina victims
Planning, Response Are Faulted

World: Where Are You?

Americans are always opening their pockets to other counties when they have a disaster. Now Americans are asking: "Where is the help from foreign countries for our disaster?"

There has been some help or offers of help. For example, I found these stories in a Yahoo search: Venezuela; France; and Canada.

However, many feel the help so far is not enough. For example, Michelle Malkin takes a jab at "The World" for "all" the help the U.S. is getting in KATRINA: THE WORLD COMES AROUND (SORT OF).

A side note - Our "friend" Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, who has offered some relief, can't resist slamming the U.S. about Katrina? I found this quote in a recent Reuters article.

"That government had no evacuation plan, it is incredible, the first power in the world that is so involved in Iraq ... and left its own population adrift".

If I just saw the quote without knowing it was from Chavez, I would have thought some liberal Dem leader had said it. (Sorry, I couldn't resist that.)

Hopefully, more help will come, as this time we need it.