J.E.B.: "Don't Blame my Bro'"
Florida Governor John Ellis Bush (a.k.a. JEB Bush) sent a letter to the Washington Post that says local governements are better suited to respond to disasters than the Federal Government.
On the surface, it is very compelling and informative. JEB goes to great length to describe how Florida's emergancy response team and their National Guard have reacted to recent storms and the like. The letter certainly seems to share some ideas in one of my recent posts. And it defininitely compliments ex-FEMA Leader/new FEMA consultant Michael Brown's 180 on FEMA's role in disasters.
But, like in most broadstroke arguments, he misses some key points. For starters, he failed to mention the class distinctions that occurred during the Florida evacuations for Hurricane Rita. Then there's the fact when you compare Florida's disaster history to say, Louisiana's, there's a noticable difference in how each state declares an emergency.
As I read JEB's self-congradulatory letter, I started to see how being the brother of the POTUS can have its benefits. FEMA won't red-tape you to death if the POTUS is your brother. In fact, I suppose they'll let you do pretty much whatever you want. In response, JEB gets to use his "independence" to advocate the local government over the federal government (and protect said brother in the process).
But JEB must also rely on local areas for his news too, otherwise he'd be aware of the circumstances other states were facing. He would then know FEMA rejected Blanco's idea to use the buses for Hurricane Katrina. He would understand the impact the Iraq war had on getting the levees up to par. He would know that in some states the National Guard has state and federal obligations.
But the message is clear from JEB: "Don't Blame my Bro'."
On the surface, it is very compelling and informative. JEB goes to great length to describe how Florida's emergancy response team and their National Guard have reacted to recent storms and the like. The letter certainly seems to share some ideas in one of my recent posts. And it defininitely compliments ex-FEMA Leader/new FEMA consultant Michael Brown's 180 on FEMA's role in disasters.
But, like in most broadstroke arguments, he misses some key points. For starters, he failed to mention the class distinctions that occurred during the Florida evacuations for Hurricane Rita. Then there's the fact when you compare Florida's disaster history to say, Louisiana's, there's a noticable difference in how each state declares an emergency.
As I read JEB's self-congradulatory letter, I started to see how being the brother of the POTUS can have its benefits. FEMA won't red-tape you to death if the POTUS is your brother. In fact, I suppose they'll let you do pretty much whatever you want. In response, JEB gets to use his "independence" to advocate the local government over the federal government (and protect said brother in the process).
But JEB must also rely on local areas for his news too, otherwise he'd be aware of the circumstances other states were facing. He would then know FEMA rejected Blanco's idea to use the buses for Hurricane Katrina. He would understand the impact the Iraq war had on getting the levees up to par. He would know that in some states the National Guard has state and federal obligations.
But the message is clear from JEB: "Don't Blame my Bro'."
Comments