Set the Iraq War aside for a moment, and think.

Before 9/11/01:

The Bush Administration thought the biggest threat to this country was long-range missiles. At a NATO meeting in June 2001 in Brussels, President Bush gave missile defense as the top security priority, and did not mention al Qaeda. Condolleezza Rice appeared on Meet The Press on 9/9/01, talked extensively about the administration’s missile defense plan, and did not mention al Qaeda.

Before Hurricane Katrina:

(Chronologic summary at the Washington Monthly )

Bush appoints a political crony with no disaster management experience as head of FEMA..

FEMA is downgraded from a cabinet position, folded into the Department of Homeland Security, and refocused on acts of terrorism.

FEMA denies pre-disaster mitigation fund requests from Louisiana.

The Army Corps of Engineers budget for levee construction and maintenance is slashed in 2004 and again in 2005.

Before the West Virginia coal mine disaster:

Coal mine fatalities are up for the third year in a row.

The budget for the federal Mine Safety and Health Health administration is cut by $7 million. The administration says this is because the number of coal mines is reduced.


We are not being well served here, people.

Patrick Fitzgerald's Weblog   

More Stories Rolling In About Levees Being Blown In New Orleans
Army Corps of Engineers reportedly told resident to evacuate as levees were "going to be blown." Popular New Orleans radio talk show host dismisses callers who heard explosions as quacks or disinformation artists. 

 By Greg Szymanski
12 Jan 2006