WITHOUT A DOUBT, THIS IS BUSH'S MESS

From the Department of Homeland Security's site, courtesy of AMERICAblog:

In the event of a terrorist attack, natural disaster or other large-scale emergency, the Department of Homeland Security will assume primary responsibility on March 1st for ensuring that emergency response professionals are prepared for any situation. This will entail providing a coordinated, comprehensive federal response to any large-scale crisis and mounting a swift and effective recovery effort. The new Department will also prioritize the important issue of citizen preparedness. Educating America's families on how best to prepare their homes for a disaster and tips for citizens on how to respond in a crisis will be given special attention at DHS.

Click here for more.

According to their own statement, the buck stops with the Federal Government. I'm certain that local and state governments have made their fair share of mistakes, too, but "primary responsibility" for dealing with Katrina belongs to Bush. I've been hearing something to this effect coming from scores of liberal bloggers these last few days: there were actually two disasters in New Orleans, one natural, and one man-made. Much of the carnage in the storm's wake could have been avoided, but wasn't. The President has a lot of explaining to do when this is all over. I'm especially interested in why Bush's apointee to run FEMA has absolutely no experience in dealing with disaster relief.

Thanks to Kos for that last link.

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