Hurricane politics

[millwx]

An interesting coincidence... In the year of Bush's re-election, a major hurricane struck Florida.  Criticism of the fed's handling of the disaster nearly cost him the state, according to most pundits' analyses, in November.  He won Florida by less than 2%.

No, that's not clairvoyance, that's 1992, Hurricane Andrew, and George HW Bush.

As a meteorologist with an interest in politics, I can't help but see the interesting parallel here.  While damage in Port Charlotte and Punta Gorda from Charley pales in comparison to Andrew's obliteration of Homestead, it is still significant enough to warrant major "attention".  It will be interesting to see how the Fed's response is perceived and if it costs (or gains... though that's less likely, given the region of impact) Bush any votes.  I suspect the Fed response will be excellent (Andrew was a lesson in what NOT to do... Jeb & George have already taken the right steps), and part of GHW Bush taking so much heat was because of Dem Gov (it was Lawton Chiles at the time, I think) complaining - rightfully so - about the wretched response.  Jeb almost certainly won't complain... not publicly... unless the response is atrocious... which it won't be.  So.......

I don't think it'll make a damned bit of difference.  But it COULD, and it will be interesting to see.

(BTW, since we have some Floridians on here "Floridude", "MarkDel" and "StatesRights" come to mind... I hope you all fared well.  And be forewarned, Tropical Depression #5 is likely to intensify, move into the northeast Gulf of Mexico, and strike somewhere between New Orleans and Fort Myers... the landfall region is wide, because it's WAY too far out to nail down yet, as landfall won't occur until about the end of next week.)

[Blue Rectangle]

I did notice that Bush was very quick to make the disaster area declaration.  The first thing I thought of was Andrew.  Expect to see a huge overplay of this event as Bush spends an inordinate amount of time touring hard-hit areas in the coming week.

Oh, and maybe we'll even see Gore try to blame the hurricane on Bush (you know, because he didn't support Kyoto).

[The Vorlon]

Not that I would ever accuse any politicial figure of trying to milk a natural disaster for political gain... but....

I suspect Karl Rove and Bush are currently reviewing footage of Bill Clinton "feeling the pain" of assorted victims he met in his 8 years.

I also expect a "soft fuzzy" Bush tour of the area, where naturally "Bush will take bold action" to help Florida.

Also, this just in...

The DNC has also just issued a news release about the Bush administrion's "failed intelligence" over this storm and how Kerry would have built a broad coalition of meteorologist from NATO and the UN to fight an effective war against tropical depressions.

The New York Times reports that French, German, and Russian meteorologists  privately support the Kerry campaign's storm forcasting models and hope that the different fractal models of ocean storms, that only a new Administration can bring, will allow greater accuracy in tracking storms in the future.

There are also reports of Halliburton overcharging in Florida for plywood and flashlight batteries...

But no... I don't expect anybody to play politics with this storm....


Bush Promises Aid to Hurricane Victims

SIOUX CITY, Iowa - President Bush (news - web sites) said Saturday that federal help is in place in Florida for the victims of Hurricane Charley and he prepared for a trip Sunday to survey damage from the disaster.

"We have got aid stations, ... federal officials are on the ground, many lives have been affected by this hurricane," the president told thousands of supporters at a campaign rally in Iowa. "I know you join me in sending our prayers."

Bush said he planned to go to Florida "to visit with those who lives were hurt by Hurricane Charley."

"I wanted them to know that our federal government is responding quickly to provide aid," he said. "Many lives have been affected by this hurricane, and I know you join me in sending our prayers to those people who look for solace and help."

Earlier in Seattle, on the last day of a five-day campaign swing through eight states, White House spokesman Scott McClellan said the president "wants to take a firsthand look at damage from Charley and make sure people affected by Charley are getting the assistance they need."

Bush declared a major disaster in the state Friday, ordering federal aid for the recovery effort just two hours after Hurricane Charley hit.

McClellan could not offer details about the trip, such as which parts of Florida he would visit, what the schedule would be or whether his brother, Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, would join him.

[agcatter]

LOL!!

[A18]

Coincidence? I think not.

Clearly, Bush knew about this hurricane ahead of time and allowed it to happen to kill off Democratic voters in South Florida.

Scandal!! Even worse than letting 9/11 happen!!

[A18]

You must be logged in to read this quote.

If only I could hack the DNC's website...

[muon2]

Weather, and political response to it can have strong political impact. Chicago still remembers the triple blizzards of 1979, and how they led to the election of Jane Byrne as mayor due to poor response by the incumbent. Prompt response to a local disaster can take the public's mind off of large, more distant questions. As Tip O'Neil said "All politics is local."

[Josh/Devilman88]

NC alread got hit by 2 or 3 hurricanes this year!

[MODU]

Kerry has already written off using devistated FL as a campaign backdrop.  Good for him.

[Fmr. Gov. NickG]

Clearly Bush has been too distracted by an unnecessary war in Iraq to focus on America's real priorities, like preventing hurricanes!

Of course, if we had just put more money in that Star Wars program, we would have been able to shoot Charley our of the sky before it ever hit us!

And America should be standing up to our meteorological foes...if we just evacuate at the first sign of trouble, the hurricanes win.  Bring it on!

[Gabu]

The hurricane was named Hurricane "Charley".  "Charley" was the nickname for North Vietnamese guerrilas during the Vietnam war.  Clearly, we must elect Kerry: he is our only hope to keep Charley away from America.