THE DIVIDERS

"Now we are all learning what it’s like to reap the whirlwind of fossil fuel dependence which Barbour and his cronies have encouraged. Our destructive addiction has given us a catastrophic war in the Middle East and--now--Katrina is giving our nation a glimpse of the climate chaos we are bequeathing our children."

--Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.

"President Bush's wake-up call came awfully late."

--Frank Lautenberg

"I'd like to see a Federal Trade Commission investigation launched right now. I'd like to see the administration and the president use the bully pulpit right now. I'd like him to send a very clear message to the oil companies, the distributors and refiners that we're going to do everything we can to help them get back into and remain in business but in return we expect them to fulfill their citizenship responsibilities as well and not take advantage of this situation."

--Hillary Clinton

"Where's President Bush? Is he still on vacation?...(Returning to Washington) would be a good idea. He was out in San Diego, I think, at a Naval air station giving a speech on Japan and the war in Iraq today. Based on his approval rating in the latest polls, my guess is getting back to work might not be a terrible idea. That's not the question of this hour, however."

--Jack Cafferty

"In 2001, FEMA warned that a hurricane striking New Orleans was one of the three most likely disasters in the U.S. But the Bush administration cut New Orleans flood control funding by 44 percent to pay for the Iraq war."

--Sidney Blumenthal

"But in a capital suffused with anger and partisan division, it did not take long for Bush's leadership on Katrina to come under question. Noting that it took Bush two days to cut short his vacation and return to Washington, Democrats painted the president as dithering while New Orleans drowned."

--Peter Baker

[We]'re hearing from the field both praise and criticism, that there wasn't a quick enough response. One thing that I am not really up to speed on, and I'd welcome any help from some of our colleagues at the Pentagon, is how much the National Guard deployments from around the region to Iraq and Afghanistan and other parts of the world has depleted the resources that were available, at least in the first 48 hours, to New Orleans."

--Andrea Mitchell

"As these facts get out, and the American people learn that decisions were made not to fund improvements of the levees because of Iraq, they will not be happy."

--Chris Kofinis, Democratic consultant

"While no one could have anticipated when a hurricane of Katrina's power would hit the Gulf coast or the extent of damage it would do, the devastation in New Orleans was predictable and preventable, and the Bush administration and Republicans in Congress must bear responsibility for slashing the funds meant for shoring up the levees meant to keep the water out."

--Democrats.org

"Mr. President, this morning, as we speak . . . there are people with signs saying 'Help, come get me'. People still in the attic, waving. Nurses are phoning in saying the situation in hospitals is getting ever more dire and the nurses are getting sick because of no clean water. Some of the things they asked our correspondents to ask you is: They expected -- they say to us -- that the day after this hurricane that there would be a massive and visible armada of federal support. There would be boats coming in. There would be food. There would be water. It would be there within hours. They wondered: What's taking so long?"

"But given the fact that everyone anticipated a hurricane 5, a possible hurricane 5, hitting shore, are you satisfied at the pace at which this is arriving and which it was planned to arrive?"

"Some people, Democratic critics, have begun to say that they were surprised that you didn't come back to the White House on Tuesday, and start to organize this cabinet meeting that you did yesterday."

--Diane Sawyer, interview with President Bush, Good Morning America

"George W. Bush gave one of the worst speeches of his life yesterday, especially given the level of national distress and the need for words of consolation and wisdom. In what seems to be a ritual in this administration, the president appeared a day later than he was needed. He then read an address of a quality more appropriate for an Arbor Day celebration: a long laundry list of pounds of ice, generators and blankets delivered to the stricken Gulf Coast. He advised the public that anybody who wanted to help should send cash, grinned, and promised that everything would work out in the end."

--New York Times editorial, September 1, 2005

This is just a sampling of the ugliness coming from the Left.

Rather than uniting to alleviate the suffering and despair that Hurricane Katrina left in her wake, there are those wishing to use the disaster to lash out at the Bush administration.

An American city has been obliterated by Katrina. Extensive damage spans Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama.

The first concern should be restoring order and caring for the victims.

They need help, not editorials slamming the administration for global warming.

The people left homeless need food, water, and shelter. Attacks by politicians provide them no comfort.

Does the press bashing Bush for not getting aid to those affected fast enough alleviate any of the suffering?

Let's have a reality check now.

It's Thursday.

Katrina hit land on Monday. The story of the day was that New Orleans had dodged a bullet.

From August 29:

NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- Katrina weakened overnight to a Category 4 storm and made a slight turn to the right before hitting land at 6:10 a.m. CDT near the bayou town of Buras. It passed just to the east of New Orleans as it moved inland and later dropped to a 105-mph Category 2 storm, sparing this vulnerable city its full fury.

But destruction was everywhere along Gulf Coast, including an estimated 40,000 homes flooded in St. Bernard Parish just east of New Orleans, said state Sen. Walter Boasso.

...National Hurricane Center Director Max Mayfield warned that New Orleans would be pounded throughout the day and that Katrina's potential 15-foot storm surge, down from a feared 28 feet, was still enough to cause extensive flooding. Ed Rappaport, deputy director of the hurricane center, estimated that the highest winds in New Orleans were about 100 mph.

...By midday, the brunt of the storm had moved beyond New Orleans to Mississippi's coast, home to the state's floating casinos, where Katrina washed sailboats onto a coastal four-lane highway. The Beau Rivage Hotel and Casino, one of the premier gambling spots in Biloxi, had water on the first floor, and Barbour said other casinos were flooded as well.

...In New Orleans' historic French Quarter of Napoleonic-era buildings with wrought-iron balconies, water pooled in the streets from the driving rain, but the area appeared to have escaped the catastrophic flooding that forecasters had predicted.

...At the hotel Le Richelieu, the winds blew open sets of balcony French doors shortly after dawn. Seventy-three-year-old Josephine Elow of New Orleans pressed her weight against the broken doors as a hotel employee tried to secure them.

"It's not life-threatening," Mrs. Elow said as rain water dripped from her face. "God's got our back."

At first, it appeared that New Orleans was spared. All this talk of not enough being done by the federal government bothers me, Bush being blamed for dropping the ball, etc.

The same members of the media, such as Brian Williams, who reported that Katrina took a turn and did not do the damage that was feared, now are saying that the Bush administration failed to take the proper measures in a timely fashion.

The following are statements on federal emergency assistance that were issued for the states in Katrina's path:

The President today declared an emergency exists in the State of Louisiana and ordered Federal aid to supplement state and local response efforts in the parishes located in the path of Hurricane Katrina beginning on August 26, 2005, and continuing.

The President today declared an emergency exists in the State of Mississippi and ordered Federal aid to supplement state and local response efforts in the counties located in the path of Hurricane Katrina beginning on August 27, 2005, and continuing.

The President today declared an emergency exists in the State of Alabama and ordered Federal aid to supplement state and local response efforts the counties located in the direct path of Hurricane Katrina beginning on August 28, 2005, and continuing.

All of these declarations went into effect BEFORE Katrina hit.

In the case of Louisiana, it was three days before the storm came ashore that Bush designated that an emergency exists.

The President has directed all federal agencies throughout the government to do all in their power to assist the victims of Hurricane Katrina.

The experience of the past few days shows that a disaster as massive as Katrina can't be remedied easily.

I wonder why the state and local governments didn't act more effectively. FEMA works in conjunction with the states.

The Feds don't come in and take over.

They respond to requests for assistance.

I think the governor of Louisana, Kathleen Blanco, is a very lucky woman. There is a rabid liberal media looking to place all the blame for the problems on the President. If that was not the case, maybe she would be held accountable for missteps.

When the next hurricane is approaching, I hope people will remember the scenes coming out of New Orleans.

If that doesn't convince people to be prepared and heed warnings and abide by evacuation orders, nothing will.