Did Howard Dean order KS gov to lie about FEMA’s response to the Greensburg tornado?

[stephanie]

This story is just breaking...I've been following it all afternoon..Their trying to confirm it..
SNIP:
posted at 6:44 pm on May 10, 2007 by Bryan
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XM Radio’s Quinn & Rose made the allegation that DNC Chairman Howard Dean called Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius early Sunday morning and instructed her not to request federal assistance in recovery from the Greensburg tornado, and to lie about the federal response to date, on their show, The War Room, today. After I discussed the story via phone with both Quinn and Rose today, here’s what they sent me.


the rest at...
http://hotair.com/archives/2007/05/10/did-howard-dean-order-ks-gov-to-lie-about-femas-response-to-the-greensburg-tornado/

[Little-Acorn]

It's news to me that Howard Dean is in a position to order any state governor to do anything. Maybe he did call someone and say things that sounded like orders or instructions. If so, the proper response would have been to suggest he take a long walk off a short pier; or remind him that his mother is calling him, etc.

Is there any sign that he actually had any effect on anything?

[Dilloduck]

It's news to me that Howard Dean is in a position to order any state governor to do anything. Maybe he did call someone and say things that sounded like orders or instructions. If so, the proper response would have been to suggest he take a long walk off a short pier; or remind him that his mother is calling him, etc.

Is there any sign that he actually had any effect on anything?

It's my understanding that she initially made a big deal about the Guard being in Iraq instead of Kansas but later changed her story to Kansas would not be prepared if ANOTHER tornado hit. No telling if anyone advised her on what kind of political statement to make but IMHO it was the wrong place and the wrong time.

[Pale Rider]

It's my understanding that she initially made a big deal about the Guard being in Iraq instead of Kansas but later changed her story to Kansas would not be prepared if ANOTHER tornado hit. No telling if anyone advised her on what kind of political statement to make but IMHO it was the wrong place and the wrong time.

What dillo? You think a liberal is going to pass up an opportunity to turn something into a political statement? :laugh2:

[stephanie]

What dillo? You think a liberal is going to pass up an opportunity to turn something into a political statement? :laugh2:

I always believed it was set up...when I posted the article about it a few day's ago.. It just seemed like it was so rehearsed and a touch of Katrina in her response...

And I was told I was seeing boogie-men... :coffee:

[Lightning Waltz]

I'm sure that Dean is also behind this, too...


Govs Worry About Depleted National Guard
Associated Press
author's email

Associated Press
May 11, 2007
By MITCH STACY - With repeated deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan leaving state National Guards without nearly half of their required equipment, some governors are loudly questioning whether they will be able to handle the next hurricane, wildfire or terrorist attack at home.

'We are not going to be able to continue to rely on the National Guard as a full-time operational force,' North Carolina Gov. Mike Easley said.

Easley said his state has about half the equipment it needs and could probably respond adequately to a hurricane, but 'a pandemic or something like that may be a different question.'

The widespread problem of permanently losing National Guard equipment to the war was pushed to the forefront this week when Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius complained that shortages of equipment and well-trained personnel slowed Guard response to the killer tornadoes that ravaged her state.

'A lot of equipment has gone to Iraq and the equipment doesn't come back when the troops come back,' California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Thursday.

The California National Guard is missing 700 Humvees and over 1,100 high-water vehicles - nearly half the number it's supposed to have, according to documents reviewed by The AP. The Guard also has just 1,301 M4 machine guns, or less than a third of its required stockpile.

Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe acknowledged that his state, with much of its National Guard equipment in Iraq, could have similar problems as Kansas if disaster struck.

Beebe said that much of the Arkansas Guard's engineering unit is deployed in Iraq, and that the state's Blackhawk helicopters also are overseas.

'It would be nice if the federal government would provide (soldiers in Iraq) with sufficient materials so that the states would still have sufficient materials for their people in case of a crisis,' Beebe said,

National Guard troops take heavy equipment, such as Humvees, to Iraq where they are specially outfitted for combat and then left behind. Some states reported the equipment was eventually replaced or returned, but severely worn. Many are still waiting.

Connecticut, for example, is missing more than 200 high-mobility multipurpose vehicles, a Chinook CH-47D cargo helicopter, 1,500 pairs of night-vision goggles and 21 large support vehicles such as tankers, wreckers and heavy cargo vehicles.

White House and Pentagon officials have said that equipment sharing agreements among the states would ensure there would be adequate hardware available to handle any disaster. Such sharing is common place - 48 states that belong to an emergency assistance compact, an agreement to help each other in emergencies.

The Pentagon acknowledged this week that Army National Guard units had only 56 percent of their required equipment, the lowest levels since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said the Bush administration is asking Congress for $22 billion for the Army National Guard over the next five years, which would take Guard equipment levels up to 76 percent.

Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley's office released a memo this week saying that the state's National Guard is facing 'critical equipment shortfalls to meet its domestic homeland security mission.'

The report found 'serious potential deficiencies in an array of basic, multipurpose items whose utility is clear for responding to incidents ranging from hurricanes to acts of terrorism.'

In a letter to President Bush this week, Democratic senator and presidential candidate Barack Obama said the National Guard's equipment was stretched thin in his home state of Illinois.

Citing data from the Government Accountability Office, Obama added that the Illinois National Guard has only 45.6 percent of needed equipment on hand - less than half of what he said would be needed to handle a Mississippi River flood, respond to deadly tornadoes or evacuate civilians wounded in an attack.

'Our National Guard should never be overstretched to the point where we allow our homeland security and emergency response capabilities to erode,' Obama wrote. 'We cannot afford to learn a lesson about unmet needs each time a disaster strikes.'

The biggest fear in Nevada is the upcoming fire season. Last year, fire burned more than 2,000 square miles in the state.

Guard officials there say they are ready, but Democrats in the Nevada Senate signed a letter urging Republican Gov. Jim Gibbons to petition President Bush to call Nevada guardsmen home by November. Gibbons does not intend to petition the president, his spokesman said.

Oregon officials also worry about responding to earthquakes. Geologists say there is potential for a major inland earthquake or a tsunami off the Oregon coast.

'We are in as good shape as we can be, given the circumstances,' said Jake Weigler, spokesman for Gov. Ted Kulongoski. 'But obviously, these war deployments have hurt our abilities to respond to these types of disasters.'

In Florida, where officials are preparing for a predicted busy hurricane season, U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson has expressed concern that the state National Guard has only 53 percent of the dual-use equipment it once had for responding to a storm or domestic disturbance, according to the GAO analysis.

But a Florida National Guard spokesman, Lt. Col. Ron Tittle, noted Thursday that the Guard responded to the 2004 and 2005 hurricanes with less equipment and fewer troops than are available now.

'It's not a show stopper,' Tittle said. 'We proved we can respond effectively in 2004 and 2004. We will be there. There is no question in our minds - we've got sufficient equipment to satisfy any emergency management requirements in Florida.'

http://www.losangeleschronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=26808

[stephanie]

I'm sure that Dean is also behind this, too...



http://www.losangeleschronicle.com/articles/viewArticle.asp?articleID=26808

Not sure what this has to do with the comments of the Governor of Kansas..But

[typomaniac]

Not sure what this has to do with the comments of the Governor of Kansas..ButSpin. Sebelius happens to be a Dem, therefore the Bushies are desperate to blame it all on her and nothing on the feds.

Those quotes, you'll notice, were mostly from Republican governors.

[Lightning Waltz]

Not sure what this has to do with the comments of the Governor of Kansas..But

You're not?

Wow...I thought it would have been obvious... There are widespread problems that both Democrat and Republican governors recognize with the readiness of our national guard units.

It's doubtful, therefore, that Dean is "behind it", but that it's a legitimate complaint.

BTW, get a real source to back up your story, yet?

[stephanie]

Spin. Sebelius happens to be a Dem, therefore the Bushies are desperate to blame it all on her and nothing on the feds.

Those quotes, you'll notice, were mostly from Republican governors.

Spin on her part??

I don't want to forget the people who we're devastated by this tornado, but for her to come out with such an outrageous comment like she did, for a town of 1500 people....I just thought it was ridiculous..And politically motivated..
I don't care what it does to the Bushies...It made her look pathetic in my opinion...

[gabosaurus]

A survey of the major Kansas newspapers (which, like most Midwest media, tend to be conservative) find nothing to back up those ridiculous claims. Which makes it yet another right-wing smear attempt.
I did find this, however:

By JIM SULLINGER
The Kansas City Star

Federal officials have some advice for the homeless in Greensburg, Kan., who might be getting government trailers: Keep the windows open.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency said proper ventilation would keep formaldehyde emissions in a safe range.

The Sierra Club disagrees.

The environmental organization held a telephone news conference Thursday and urged anyone who lives in a FEMA trailer to check formaldehyde levels. It offered free testing kits to anyone in Greensburg who wants one.

Becky Gillette, vice chairwoman of the club’s Mississippi chapter, said the government bought 145,000 travel trailers after Hurricane Katrina.

“Unfortunately, testing has shown a large percentage of these trailers have levels of formaldehyde that make people sick,” she said.

Formaldehyde is used in numerous products, including the wood used to make trailers.

FEMA-authorized testing on 96 trailers found that adequate ventilation significantly reduced formaldehyde levels.

The study, which was released last week, was conducted in Gulf Coast states. The units had been closed for six weeks before testing.

The analysis found that concentrations of the chemical averaged 1.2 parts per million in the initial tests. Researchers then opened the windows in half the trailers and ran air conditioners in the other half.

Samples in the open-window trailers averaged 0.3 part per million after four days of ventilation. The air-conditioned trailers with one bathroom vent open remained above 0.3 part per million.

The report did not specify a safety standard but said the 0.3 level is safe.

The Sierra Club disputed the findings, saying independent tests it performed found unhealthful levels.

A Sierra Club formaldehyde expert, Thad Godish, a professor at Ball State University, said FEMA should have used California’s safety standards.

California officials, he said, recommend remedial action when levels reach 0.1 part per million, and 2 parts per million is considered a very high concentration.

Formaldehyde fumes can cause headaches, chest congestion, burning eyes, coughing and respiratory problems.

Gillette said the young and the elderly are particularly sensitive to the problem, first noticed on the Gulf Coast.

Crystal Peyton, a FEMA spokeswoman in Greensburg, said it was not known how many trailers would be needed there.

[typomaniac]

Spin on her part??All politicians spin. I doubt they're capable of turning it off. :)

[stephanie]

You're not?

Wow...I thought it would have been obvious... There are widespread problems that both Democrat and Republican governors recognize with the readiness of our national guard units.

It's doubtful, therefore, that Dean is "behind it", but that it's a legitimate complaint.

BTW, get a real source to back up your story, yet?

Haven't seen anything more on the story, yet..
I guess I should of put the article in conspiracy theories....:coffee:

[stephanie]

All politicians spin. I doubt they're capable of turning it off. :)

SO TRUE..