"Governor, you've been asked 14 times, why are you refusing to answer the question?"

[Mayhem]

Mitt Romney Refuses To Talk About FEMA After Hurricane Sandy Event

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/30/mitt-romney-fema_n_2044213.html

Mitt Romney refused to answer reporters' questions about how he would handle the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), after a Tuesday "storm relief" event in Ohio for Hurricane Sandy.

From the Romney pool report:


TV pool asked Romney at least five times whether he would eliminate FEMA as president/what he would do with FEMA. He ignored the qs but they are audible on cam. The music stopped at points and the qs would have been audible to him.


A follow-up report noted the specific questions Romney ignored, as he was collecting hurricane supplies following his event:

"Gov are you going to eliminate FEMA?" a print pooler shouted, receiving no response.
Wires reporters asked more questions about FEMA that were ignored.

Romney kept coming over near pool to pick up more water. He ignored these questions:

"Gov are you going to see some storm damage?"

"Gov has [New Jersey Gov.] Chris Christie invited you to come survey storm damage?"

"Gov you've been asked 14 times, why are you refusing to answer the question?"


During a GOP primary debate last year, Romney had said he supported the idea of states and private sector groups taking over responsibility for disaster relief.

"Every time you have an occasion to take something from the federal government and send it back to the states, that's the right direction," he said. "And if you can go even further and send it back to the private sector, that's even better. Instead of thinking, 'In the federal budget, what we should cut?' we should ask the opposite question: 'What should we keep?'"

"We cannot -- we cannot afford to do those things without jeopardizing the future for our kids," Romney continued, when asked specifically about disaster relief. "It is simply immoral, in my view, for us to continue to rack up larger and larger debts and pass them on to our kids, knowing full well that we'll all be dead and gone before it's paid off. It makes no sense at all."

Those comments were highlighted in the wake of Hurricane Sandy as a sign of how Romney might respond to natural disasters. His campaign quickly clarified that Romney's emergency management response would include FEMA.

“Governor Romney believes that states should be in charge of emergency management in responding to storms and other natural disasters in their jurisdictions,” said campaign spokeswoman Amanda Henneberg. “As the first responders, states are in the best position to aid affected individuals and communities and to direct resources and assistance to where they are needed most. This includes help from the federal government and FEMA.”

The Republican presidential nominee and his running mate, Rep. Paul Ryan, suspended all campaign events on Monday evening and Tuesday "out of sensitivity" to the victims of Hurricane Sandy.

 

[Mayhem]

Mitt Romney's Argument For Shutting Down FEMA Ripped In New York Times Editorial

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/30/mitt-romneys-argument-for_n_2042896.html

A New York Times editorial published online on Monday night ripped the argument Mitt Romney made for shutting down the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) last year at a debate during the GOP presidential primary season.

The NYT editorial board said of Romney's remarks:

Mr. Romney not only believes that states acting independently can handle the response to a vast East Coast storm better than Washington, but that profit-making companies can do an even better job. He said it was “immoral” for the federal government to do all these things if it means increasing the debt.

As superstorm Sandy threatened the East Coast on Sunday night, HuffPost's Ryan Grim reported on the comments in question from the debate.

Asked at the 2011 event if FEMA should be shut down so that states could take the lead on disaster response, the former Massachusetts governor said, "Absolutely." He continued, "Every time you have an occasion to take something from the federal government and send it back to the states, that's the right direction. And if you can go even further, and send it back to the private sector, that's even better. Instead of thinking, in the federal budget, what we should cut, we should ask the opposite question, what should we keep?"

Pressed on the issue of disaster relief specifically, Romney said he believes it's "immoral" for the federal government to take action if it means "[racking] up larger and larger debts."

The NYT editorial board criticized the case made by the Republican presidential contender in no uncertain terms:

It’s an absurd notion, but it’s fully in line with decades of Republican resistance to federal emergency planning. FEMA, created by President Jimmy Carter, was elevated to cabinet rank in the Bill Clinton administration, but was then demoted by President George W. Bush, who neglected it, subsumed it into the Department of Homeland Security, and placed it in the control of political hacks. The disaster of Hurricane Katrina was just waiting to happen.

The Romney campaign sought to do damage control after the presidential candidate's remarks on FEMA resurfaced on Sunday night. An official said, "Gov. Romney wants to ensure states, who are the first responders and are in the best position to aid impacted individuals and communities, have the resources and assistance they need to cope with natural disasters."

HuffPost's Jason Cherkis reports:

Republican presidential hopeful Mitt Romney argues that federal disaster response should be handled at the state level, but when disaster struck Massachusetts, he was missing in action, according to some of the state's local politicians.
On Oct. 9, 2005, heavy rain storms caused the Green River to rise to historic levels and begin flooding into Greenfield, Mass. The flooding destroyed a trailer park and demolished swaths of low-income housing. Roads were impassable. The flood waters submerged the town's water treatment plant.

As the rain fell and the Green River rose, Greenfield's then-Mayor Christine Forgey tells The Huffington Post that she did not hear from Romney. About 75 people, including many retirees, lost their homes in the trailer park, she says. Still many more were displaced. Forgey says a resident opened up the high school and used it as a crisis shelter. A radio station launched a food and clothing drive and the Red Cross provided services.

A Big Storm Requires Big Government

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/30/opinion/a-big-storm-requires-big-government.html?ref=opinion&_r=0

Most Americans have never heard of the National Response Coordination Center, but they’re lucky it exists on days of lethal winds and flood tides. The center is the war room of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, where officials gather to decide where rescuers should go, where drinking water should be shipped, and how to assist hospitals that have to evacuate.

Disaster coordination is one of the most vital functions of “big government,” which is why Mitt Romney wants to eliminate it. At a Republican primary debate last year, Mr. Romney was asked whether emergency management was a function that should be returned to the states. He not only agreed, he went further.

“Absolutely,” he said. “Every time you have an occasion to take something from the federal government and send it back to the states, that’s the right direction. And if you can go even further and send it back to the private sector, that’s even better.” Mr. Romney not only believes that states acting independently can handle the response to a vast East Coast storm better than Washington, but that profit-making companies can do an even better job. He said it was “immoral” for the federal government to do all these things if it means increasing the debt.

It’s an absurd notion, but it’s fully in line with decades of Republican resistance to federal emergency planning. FEMA, created by President Jimmy Carter, was elevated to cabinet rank in the Bill Clinton administration, but was then demoted by President George W. Bush, who neglected it, subsumed it into the Department of Homeland Security, and placed it in the control of political hacks. The disaster of Hurricane Katrina was just waiting to happen.

The agency was put back in working order by President Obama, but ideology still blinds Republicans to its value. Many don’t like the idea of free aid for poor people, or they think people should pay for their bad decisions, which this week includes living on the East Coast.

Over the last two years, Congressional Republicans have forced a 43 percent reduction in the primary FEMA grants that pay for disaster preparedness. Representatives Paul Ryan, Eric Cantor and other House Republicans have repeatedly tried to refuse FEMA’s budget requests when disasters are more expensive than predicted, or have demanded that other valuable programs be cut to pay for them. The Ryan budget, which Mr. Romney praised as “an excellent piece of work,” would result in severe cutbacks to the agency, as would the Republican-instigated sequester, which would cut disaster relief by 8.2 percent on top of earlier reductions.

Does Mr. Romney really believe that financially strapped states would do a better job than a properly functioning federal agency? Who would make decisions about where to send federal aid? Or perhaps there would be no federal aid, and every state would bear the burden of billions of dollars in damages. After Mr. Romney’s 2011 remarks recirculated on Monday, his nervous campaign announced that he does not want to abolish FEMA, though he still believes states should be in charge of emergency management. Those in Hurricane Sandy’s path are fortunate that, for now, that ideology has not replaced sound policy.

 

[Mr. Daystar]

Probably because he plans on using them to intern American citizens, and enforce martial law if he gets elected....just like the asshole we have now will do.

It's coming, one of them is going to drop the hammer before the next four years is over.

 

[PlumpRump]

Its pretty obvious that hurricane Sandy is just another attempt by Republicans at voter suppression.

 

[vodkazvictim]

Enough of your BS Mayhem, Bush handled Katrina well and Romney is a worthy successor who will handle an equivelant equally well!
ENOUGH I SAY!

:violent:

 

[Johan]

Its pretty obvious that hurricane Sandy is just another attempt by Republicans at voter suppression.

Nope, it's God punishing America for the gay people
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/10/...mes-hurricane-sandy-on-the-homosexual-agenda/

Strangely, San Francisco wasn't in the path of the hurricane...

 

[Mayhem]

Enough of your BS Mayhem, Bush handled Katrina well and Romney is a worthy successor who will handle an equivelant equally well!
ENOUGH I SAY!

:violent:

Me sowwy. :shy:

 

[StanScratch]

Nope, it's God punishing America for the gay people
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/10/...mes-hurricane-sandy-on-the-homosexual-agenda/

Strangely, San Francisco wasn't in the path of the hurricane...

Since hurricanes mainly hit red states, must be a buttload of gays in red states.

 

[mikexmoran]

I had to go to 7-11 to get coffee this morning because I had no power after Sandy ran by. I drank out of my blue Obama cup and enjoyed the coffee. I'm in a blue state and I don't even think the Republican presidential levers work in the voting booths in NY. Sandy kicked our collective asses here in lower NY.

 

[Mayhem]

I had to go to 7-11 to get coffee this morning because I had no power after Sandy ran by. I drank out of my blue Obama cup and enjoyed the coffee. I'm in a blue state and I don't even think the Republican presidential levers work in the voting booths in NY. Sandy kicked our collective asses here in lower NY.

I'm not making this up. Here in Vegas, at my local 7-11, the Obama cups are usually sold out and there's nothing but Romney cups (large). Last week, I had to settle for a medium, because there's no fuckin' way.

 

[ILuvChloe]

Blah blah blah. Sorry dudes. There's no way I'm voting Obama. I'm gonna help swing New Hampshire toward Sanity.

 

[Mayhem]

Blah blah blah. Sorry dudes. There's no way I'm voting Obama. I'm gonna help swing New Hampshire toward Sanity.

You may as well stay home. New Hampshire is in Obama's pocket.

 

[TheSpokenWheel]

You may as well stay home. New Hampshire is in Obama's pocket.

Doesn't matter, he's in NH. He'll forget all about the election and go shopping for birkenstocks.

 

[Rey C.]

Why did they keep asking him? Hell, he would have just given 14 different answers and all the ones that were unpopular, he'd have just said that he was misunderstood 13 times.

 

[TheSpokenWheel]

Why did they keep asking him? Hell, he would have just given 14 different answers and all the ones that were unpopular, he'd have just said that he was misunderstood 13 times.

Most of them would have been about Benghazi.

 

[ILuvChloe]

Doesn't matter, he's in NH. He'll forget all about the election and go shopping for birkenstocks.

go get eaten by a dinosaur! lol. jk.

 

[TheSpokenWheel]

go get eaten by a dinosaur! lol. jk.

I was just kidding, NH is cool, but Maine is better

 

[mikexmoran]

I was just kidding, NH is cool, but Maine is better

I use NH to get to Maine.

 

[TheSpokenWheel]

I use NH to get to Maine.

heh, I use it to get to Massachusetts.

 

[mikexmoran]

heh, I use it to get to Massachusetts.

Isn't it part of Massachusetts?