Ellington

The neo-cons' favorite Brit did an interview with Austrailian Broadcasting Corp. yesterday that won't fly so well with Bush supporters. Here's an excerpt, but read the whole thing:

TONY JONES: Even more astonishing, wouldn't you think, that President Bush himself claimed only last Thursday that "I don't think anyone anticipated the breach of the levees" - when of course that's what was being anticipated by the disaster planners all over the country.

CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS: Absolutely. It's one of the two or three best-known risks to the United States, is that the levees protecting New Orleans could break. I know that and I live in Washington. It's also, I'm afraid to say, the only thing the President has said about this that anyone can remember. I mean, he didn't get there - it isn't that they didn't fly to the city beforehand, which he could easily have done on that kind of warning, and say, "Look, I'm the President of the United States, we can't lose or even risk losing one of our great historic cities. I have come to make sure that all the state and city officials have got everything they could possibly want in advance."

For example, a few piles of bottled water wouldn't have come amiss if there's going to be suddenly too much water but none of it drinkable. Elementary things like that. He didn't do that. Then he did a fly-by from his holiday retreat, and then he got there too late and then he said something completely idiotic. So I really can't see there is any forgiveness for that. And remember also, that he did interrupt his holiday not very long ago to pay attention to something that was none of his business at all as President. Namely, the alleged living condition of an actually dead woman named Terri Schiavo.

TONY JONES: Let's go back one step before I pick up on some of the strands of what this actually means for the Bush presidency. Let me ask you the most obvious question: how did the US authorities, the emergency authorities in particular, get it so wrong?

CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS: Well, you ask a very possibly exhaustive question. I mean, there is the federal emergency management association, FEMA, so-called, which has been going through some downgrading lately, partly because it's been folded into the greater Homeland Security bureaucracy. A lot of familiar departments to Americans sort of vanished into an alphabet soup inside the greater Homeland Security. Then there is the possibility, in fact, now the necessity, of using the armed forces and the National Guard. The Chicago Tribune has a story today, I think, that an enormous American ship, the USS 'Bataan', has been in the Gulf for some time doing nothing, just on station. It's able to pump thousands of gallons of water, converting salt to fresh. It has a hospital full of beds. It's a huge resource. It hasn't been deployed. No use has been made of it. Still doesn't have any patients. It's not really a question of the not being enough capacity, it's a matter of there not having been any coordination before the event.

TONY JONES: Christopher, we heard that Jefferson Parish official, Aaron Broussard, referring to this as one of the worst ever abandonment of Americans on American soil in history. I mean, how is that going to play, that kind of cry for help coming from the centre of the disaster, with the American public?

CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS: Well, it's already reverberating, judging by the conversations I've been having and the email I have been getting and so forth, it's already reverberating very powerfully indeed because of the set of circumstances I just mentioned, because it could have been avoided. It's not like, say, the terrible anniversary that we're about to observe on September 11. It's not like an earthquake even. It's something that not only could have been seen coming but was seen coming, and everyone seems to have been sleepwalking through it. That includes some of the officials of Jefferson Parish, but I have no formal quarrel with what the man says. And there is an additional thing, of course, which is the very drastic inequalities that you see among the suffering.

TONY JONES: I was going to...that's one of the key points. This exposure of what is obviously a very large underclass in New Orleans and across the south, what is that going to mean? I mean, the people who've been left behind here, those without cars, the sick, the infirm, the handicapped, the ill-informed, the ignorant, most of them black - how are Americans going to come to terms with what's happened here?

CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS: And I think you might have to add also the criminal element. I haven't been able to confirm this, but I was told they just opened the jails and let people out. Because they didn't know what to do and the police department started to throw up its hands and buckle quite quickly. People actually deserted in the middle of the calamity. And if it's true that the criminal population was just released on to the streets then that's an additional inflection on the people who were remaining behind. It's like turning the wolves onto the sheep.

TONY JONES: How will America come to terms, do you think, with this, though, this racial element which Jesse Jackson has jumped upon so quickly. We've heard this rapper who made the public comments on network television which were censored from one coast to the other. It's obviously extremely sensitive, not many people have made these comments, but those who have have got an awful lot of publicity.

CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS: Well, yes. I mean, I don't think the Reverend Jackson's opinions are now taken as seriously as they once were. But, look, the thought is bound to occur to people naturally, you don't have to do any prompting let alone any incitement. I mean there it is, the revelation that a lot Americans live in effect in the Third World - and in a banana republic version of it too - and right within our borders. That's quite extraordinary. I forget who it was who said that if you looked at a lot of this screen footage and you didn't know where it was, you would have had to assume that it was perhaps in the Caribbean or in Somalia.

TONY JONES: We obviously saw at the beginning of this year tsunami in Indonesia and the extra civility with which the victims of that disaster treated each other. Why has it been so different in the United States? One thinks of these extraordinary scenes inside the Superdome in New Orleans? [...]

TONY JONES: ... [H]ow is this going to play into the debate over Iraq? I mean, where were the Louisiana National Guard? Many of them were in Iraq, so we believe. The money that was supposed to be spent on the levees, these sort of arguments are already being paid, was diverted to Iraq. How is that going to play? George Bush's popularity is already at an all-time low for his presidency, largely because of what's happening in Iraq.

CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS: Yes, I mean, it really could not have come at a worse time for him from that point of view, and of course the accusation that the resources could've been in the Gulf, not just in New Orleans, are in the other gulf, as it were, the Middle Eastern Gulf, is a very easy one for people to grasp. It takes 10 seconds to see that point. I think it myself partakes of a rather zero sum mentality. I mean, there is no reason at all why there aren't enough people to guard New Orleans and to help stabilise Baghdad, but the comparison is going to be made and, in fact, it won't even take anyone in politics to point it out, because people have already, so to speak, noticed it. There may be some embarrassment, I think, at appearing to politicise the disaster, I don't think any Democrat yet fight wants to be first in making any direct connection of this kind while we're still digging out the bodies, but the connection has already moved from being latent to blatant in people's minds. [...]

TONY JONES: Pitch ahead for us, if you can. What lasting effect do you think this will have on the Bush presidency?

CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS: Well, in terms of political psyche, shall we say, it's good for the Democrats in about five different ways. One, it reminds people of the existence of the underclass, which tends to be downplayed, shall we say, by the Republican Party. Second it reminds people of the importance of government spending and government services, again, I think the same intuitive or subliminal point applies. Third it makes it at a populous level anyway harder to make a solid case for Iraq, though it doesn't really alter the case about whether you think the war is a just or necessary one. And then fourthly, it reflects very badly on the personality of the President himself. So this is not, I think, a transient story. This is not something that is going to be confined to the Weather Channel, shall we say. I think it will be remembered as a hinge event in the second term.

TONY JONES: If it is a hinge event, is there any way he can use it to his advantage, as he ultimately did after a very shaky start immediately after September 11?

CHRISTOPHER HITCHENS: Well, no, I think people forgave him for blundering around on that day, and not quite knowing what to do and making what must have been one of the worst speeches ever given by any politician. That could, as it were, be forgiven because everyone felt I'm sure, my God, how would I have held up on a day like that? This is worse because, a) it could be seen coming and b), I might just add, by the way, I mean, these States that have been devastated, Louisiana and Mississippi and Somerset and Alabama, they're all in the Republican column. The President is supposed to care about and nurturing the South, so is Karl Rove. What were they thinking? What were they thinking? I have no answer to that question that doesn't come up with a revelation of the most, really, catastrophic incompetence and insouciance.

Previous Comments

ID

134331

Comment

B*tch-slapped by Hitchens; it must sting dreadfully.

Author

C.W.

Date

2005-09-06T20:35:56-06:00

ID

134332

Comment

OK, peeking in for a moment before having to leave town at 7 a.m. But I had to comment: that is the most fabulous posting I've seen in a while, C.W. Go, girl! You get the Post o' the Week Award. ;-D

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-06T23:00:27-06:00

ID

134333

Comment

Of course, one could ask why the opinion of a drunken British attention-hungry pundit (whom I like as a person, incidentally) matters so much. To me, it doesn't. But he sure has been (selectively) quoted by the neo-con clan to justify the Iraqi war (a topic he's not in personal damage control on). But it's funny how they don't quote most of what he says. And won't this, I'm sure.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-06T23:04:37-06:00

ID

134334

Comment

Interesting round-up of Bush gaffes since Katrina.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-06T23:42:52-06:00

ID

134335

Comment

I take Hitch only slightly more seriously than I take Dick Morris, but he's an interesting provocateur and sometimes has intelligent things to say. This is one of them. Cheers, TH

Author

Tom Head

Date

2005-09-06T23:52:36-06:00

ID

134336

Comment

Yeah, this is kind of old Hitch before he started having to cover his tracks all the time after mucking up his predictions about the Iraqi War. This is the kind of thinking that got him where he is -- not partisan, but clear. Truth is, though, he has continued this kind of provocative talk even of late -- it's just that the right cherry-picks him so badly. When Todd and I spent the afternoon drinking with him (mostly him drinking) at Que Sera when he was at Millsaps, his blistering critique of tort-reform proponents would have had many Mississippi Repubs crying in their beer. And he supported John Edwards for president. Then we forgot all that, and I took him to James Meredith's house. Hitch was completely blown away that we could just call him up and go over there and talk to him. He wasn't bothered that Mr. M had no idea who he was. And both of us were highly amused by Mr. M's Colonel Reb house slippers. But I digress. ;-)

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-07T00:00:16-06:00

ID

134337

Comment

BTW, just in case anyone wonders why the wingnuts are starting to go off the deep end, here's Dan Froomkin in the Washington Post to explain the (twisted) strategy: Now, facing what is clearly a full-scale political disaster, Rove and a handful of other masterful political operatives have gone into overdrive. They are back in campaign mode. This campaign is to salvage Bush's reputation. Like previous Rove operations, it calls for multiple appearances by the president in controlled environments in which he can appear leader-like. It calls for extensive use of Air Force One and a massive deployment of spinners. It doesn't necessarily include any change in policy. It certainly doesn't include any admission of error. It utilizes the classic Rovian tactic of attacking critics rather than defending against their criticism -- and of throwing up chaff to muddle the issue and throw the press off the scent. It calls for public expressions of outrage over the politicization of the issue and of those who would play the "blame game." While at the same time, it is utterly political in nature and heavily reliant on shifting the blame elsewhere. But in some ways, this post-Katrina campaign poses Bush's aides with unprecedented challenges. The problem -- an achingly slow federal response to what has turned out to be one of the greatest natural disasters this country has ever faced -- can be traced at least in part to one of the Bush White House's most defining characteristics: The protective bubble within which the president opera Article So, if you're a clear, independent thinker who is willing to hold the administration accountable, expect to be attacked by the spin machine (I'm used to it, BTW, and it doesn't hurt a bit). They'll call you a liberal and line you up with Clintons and Kennedys even if you despise them. They'll call you an extremist and a commie even if you're a free-enterprise and marketing whiz. They'll bait you into sniping at them back so they can say you're mean. Just remember they're attacking your STRENGTHS, so let 'em make complete asses of themselvesóand don't ever, never apologize for caring about real human beings. Be smarter than they are. S/he who dies with the compassion wins. Not to mention lives with it. Going to bed night. Nighty-night.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-07T00:06:59-06:00

ID

134338

Comment

"For example, a few piles of bottled water wouldn't have come amiss if there's going to be suddenly too much water but none of it drinkable. Elementary things like that. He didn't do that." I think this points out why this disaster is going to split our country even wider. Stockpiling fresh water in case the levee breaks is the responsibility of who--individuals, the city, the state, the federal government, the president himself? Pick and choose the answer you want based on how you felt about things prior to the storm because that's all that is happening here when people are assigning blame. Supposedly our parents and grandparents were "the Greatest Generation" and now like spoiled children and grandchildren who were given so much without having to earn it, we will go down in history as one of the worst generations. We will get what we deserve.

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2005-09-07T07:10:44-06:00

ID

134339

Comment

If you want to better understand the situation in New Orleans, then you need to go back and read what was written 1 year ago when Hurricane Ivan was headed towards New Orleans. It tells the story without all of the current spin. I will agree with all who say that it is absurd for any officials to say that they weren't aware of this potential scenario. This article written in November, 2004 was unfortunately far too accurate: http://www.colorado.edu/hazards/o/nov04/nov04c.html The article says that many who could evacuate would not evacuate. It talks about the difficulty of evacuting those who can't evacuate themselves. It says that setting up shelters in New Orleans for those who don't evacuate will be almost impossible because of the danger to the volunteers. It predicts that it would take 10 days to rescue all of the stranded people. It predicts the toxic soup and $100 billion in costs. It uses the estimate of 40,000-60,000 deaths. What the article doesn't give is a solution. It's hard to believe in hindsight but the attitude for years is that this was a disaster simply waiting to happen. It was the canal wall that broke--why were they only built to a cat 3 level when they were constructed in the 1960's. Why weren't locks built in the original construction so that a break in the canal wall could be isolated from the main body of water? The head engineer of the canals said they could have been strengthened after the fact but it would take 20 years to complete such a project. Why wasn't that started years and years ago. The truth is that blame can be dished out to every New Orleans mayor, Louisiana governor, and US President for the last 40 years if you want to assign blame because that's how long this threat has existed without getting fixed. And you can add in the citizens who didn't demand a solution, the black leaders who knew the majority of the dead would be black and yet they didn't demand a solution, the politicians who allowed the loss of some of the coastal marshes, etc., etc., etc. If blaming people makes you feel better then go ahead, but open your eyes and look at the big picture and point the finger at everyone past and present. It's a tragedy that has been in the makings for many decades.

Author

FrankEzelle

Date

2005-09-07T09:13:32-06:00

ID

134340

Comment

e truth is that blame can be dished out to every New Orleans mayor, Louisiana governor, and US President for the last 40 years if you want to assign blame because that's how long this threat has existed without getting fixed. I agree with that, and have said it already. However, responsibility for the recent cuts belong with this administration squarely. And this doesn't change the separate issue of why the feds didn't have help here sooner. These are both vital questions, and we've had a major failure in leadership on both fronts. I really feel like we've moved into a The Buck Stops With Anyone But Me/Us phase of governmentófrom national to local officials. That's scary.

Author

DonnaLadd

Date

2005-09-08T00:53:26-06:00