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White House Blames Gov. Sebelius For National Guard Shortages

thinkprogress.org — White House Press Secretary Tony Snow this morning blamed Gov. Kathleen Sebelius (D) for the shortages, saying he was “not aware of any prior complaints” by the governor about the equipment

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EntropyMan, on 10/12/2007, -13/+65And, if the WH follows the Katrina playbook, the next set of excuses will be:

* Gov. Sebelius didn't ask for the troops in time (oops, that one's done).
* If we'd simply put the national guard under Federal control, this wouldn't have happened.
* Look, no one ever guessed there would be twisters in Kansas.
* You're doing a heckuvajob, Snowie [pauses to hear KR whisper, then...] Snowie, you're fired!
- littlebylittle, on 10/12/2007, -11/+44The Katrina Playbook is his playbook for everything. Blame everything on everyone else.
  
  He's just like his Mother. He can't trouble "his beautiful mind" with such drivel.
  
  He's a Bonesman. They're smarter than the rest of us.
  
  "The members call themselves "Knights," and simultaneously call everyone else in the world at large "barbarians." Another dissociation is that clocks in the Bones "tomb" run intentionally five minutes ahead of the rest of the world, to give the members an ongoing sense that the Bonesmen's space is a totally separate world — and a world just a bit ahead of the curve of the rest of the "barbarians" outside."
  -- http://www.answers.com/topic/skull-and-bones
  
  This is how Bush thinks.
- chase001, on 10/12/2007, -10/+28Don't forget they have to have the Republican Noise Machine swiftboat her like they did Ray Nagin.
- flernk, on 10/12/2007, -9/+32 "Time and again, when the people of Kansas need help, the Kansas National Guard has responded without hesitation," Sebelius said. "Now the Guard needs Washington’s help. The President and Congress need to step up to the plate and give our Guard members the support they deserve." [...]
  
  "The Guard cannot train on equipment they do not have," Sebelius continued. "The more resources that are left behind, the less able our guardsmen are to prepare here at home. And in a state like Kansas, where tornados, floods, blizzards and wildfires can seemingly happen all at once, we need our Guardsmen to be as prepared as possible."
  
  - Kathleen Sebelius, Feb. 27, 2007
  
  The White House is lying. Again. She's been "complaining" for a while now.
- mdfrake, on 10/12/2007, -7/+17Actually, the next response by the White House will probably be to blame the Democrats in Congress for not adequately funding the debacle, er, war in Iraq. Can someone step up and impeach all of these assholes and idiots?
- VitriolAndAngst, on 10/12/2007, -6/+7Bush was haggling with Blanco to take control of the Louisiana National Guard before allowing any federal help. He was essentially holding her citizens hostage to take over a States rights. States Organize Militias -- as per the National Guard (the Second amendment isn't about NRA gun nuts, it's about citizen troops).
  
  We'd be a lot better off with all citizens with some training to defend their homestead instead of a permanent standing army -- like Sweden.
- jxs2151, on 10/12/2007, -2/+6"The Guard has a unique dual mission, with both Federal and State responsibilities. During peacetime, the Governor through the State Adjutant General commands Guard forces. The Governor can call the Guard into action during local or statewide emergencies, such as storms, drought, and civil disturbances, to name a few. In addition, the President of the United States can activate the National Guard to participate in Federal missions."
  
  http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/agency/army/arng.htm
- twoof53, on 10/12/2007, -6/+4Did you get the memo.
  
  Yes I got . . .
  
  We sent around a memo about the reports.
  
  Yes . . . Mr. President I got . . .
  
  From now on we require a coversheet on all of the T.P.S. reports.
  
  I got the memo, I just thought since it was a tornado you know an emergency . . .
  
  Why don't you re-file that T.P.S. and uh . . . I'll go ahead and make sure you get another copy of the memo.
- TubaTechno, on 10/12/2007, -13/+8Ahh. Another left wing jerk circle over a left wing media outlet. Oh wait...i'm on Digg.com....go figure.
- thcobbs, on 10/12/2007, -6/+10@chase001
  
  Ray "This will be a chocolate city" Nagin?
  
  One of the biggest racists in office?
  
  He brought his troubles on himself.
- DildoOreilly, on 10/12/2007, -12/+157 YEARS of THE BLAME GAME......from the self-serving Republican Party, the Party of 1000 Excuses
  
  It's the liberals. It's the ACLU. It's Clinton. It's Monica. It's the "climate of permissiveness". It's France. It's the liberal media. It's Clinton's p*nis. It's Hillary. It's Gov. Dean. We never could have known they'd fly planes into buildings. "No actionable intelligence". They didn't tell us to do anything. O'Neill's lying. Clarke's lying. General Shinseki's lying. The Union of Concerned Scientists is lying. Our own weapons inspector David Kay's lying. Wilson's lying. John Dean's lying. Newsweek lied! CBS lied! Everyone's lying but us. We had to lie. We never lied.
  
  Plame outed herself. Her husband outed her. The liberals outed her. No one outed her, since everyone already knew her covert identity. Rove had nothing to do with it. No comment. Lib'ral, lib'ral, lib'ral.
  
  It's the libs that tried to pull Schiavo's feeding tube. It doesn't matter that DeLay pulled his own dad's feeding tube. "Culture of life". It's Janet Jackson's boobs; it's the Statue of Justice's boobs. Reading the news might cloud my judgement. It's the "decade our government...blinded itself to our enemies". It's the homosexuals wanting to marry. "Restore honor and dignity to the White House". A decision to go to war wasn't a decision to go to war. "No actionable intelligence". It's the pledge of allegiance. They're taking God out of America. Osama didn't tell us when, how, where, and by what means he'd attack, and he didn't leave a forwarding address. The 9/11 panel is biased against us. Saddam = Al Qaida. Saddam = Al Qaida.
  
  Chalabi's an honorable man and I believe everything he says about WMDs. Chalabi's a crook and he passed secrets to Iran. Chalabi's the liberals' fault because they didn't shoot us when we started using his "intelligence". Chalabi? I don't know any 'Chalabi'!
  
  It's just a few dead-enders. They'll be gone when we capture Saddam. They'll be gone when we capture Saddam's sons. They'll be gone when we hand over "sovereignty". They'll be gone when Iraq has elections. They'll be gone in 12 years. They'll never be gone.
  
  We fight them in London so we don't have to fight them, er, uh, well, can't get fooled again!
  
  Bolton didn't lie! He just knowingly gave inaccurate answers under oath!
  
  Aw, so what's another ISLAMIC STATE in the mideast? It's not like Bush has made it a home for terrorists or anything!
  
  It's all these former staffers hawking their books. Money never corrupted anyone. "I'm a uniter, not a divider!" It's the stem cells. It's the feminazis, the intellectual elitists, and the ecoterrorists.
  
  It's the Hurricane, It's the victims. It's the poor. It's the dead. It's the disabled... the elderly. It's those that didn't evacuate. It's the buses.
  
  It's Cthulhu. It's the martians, It's Mickey Mouse, It's The Tooth Fairy, etc., etc., etc., etc., etc., etc., etc., etc., etc., etc., etc., etc.,
  
  It's ALWAYS anyone but the GOP!!
- Hillsfar, on 10/12/2007, -2/+3"Snowie's doing a heckuva (snow) job!" - G.W. Bush
Aeaus, on 10/12/2007, -20/+15Bah, evidence? Humbug, all the democrats fault.
- sharpfork, on 10/12/2007, -4/+10@aeaus
  Judging by your comments on other stories, your sarcasm was missed on this one...
sonaro, on 10/12/2007, -10/+24In other words, this is exactly what their reasoning is; "Oh, now you actually *need* the equipment now? You will have to submit another request."

This is how the administration tries to get out of its responsibility, and it works in the minds of their die-hard followers, right-wing media outlets and other humans with mental deficiencies. It doesn't matter that one has been asking for assistance for years, it only matters that they didn't ask again, immediately following the latest need for it.
Torpedoes, on 10/12/2007, -19/+8I'm rubber and your glue! Everything you say bounces off me and sticks to you....

grade school tactics = modern political landscape?
- mabhatter, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1dugg down by double-secret order of him who cannot be named!!!
  
  Can't let the plebs know how things REALLY work in the world!!!
bagold51, on 10/12/2007, -10/+8Torpedoes, you're just like the rest of the sheep following a loser of an administration. You have no concept of reality just like the Pres and the VP. But as the old saying goes, "What goes around, comes around" and both of them will eventually get theirs.
- vulgrin, on 10/12/2007, -6/+13Yep, they'll both get lifetime pensions, round the clock security, numerous speaking engagements around the world (well, at least Dick will) and lots and lots of "consulting" jobs at lots of lucrative companies that they helped out over the past 6 years.
  
  They'll also get blamed for every single thing that's wrong with the country for the next 10 years - just like Clinton. Although this time, most of that blame will be right. But seriously, if Bush doesn't feel ashamed now, he won't feel ashamed when he's on permanent vacation down in Crawford in 2009...
- EntropyMan, on 10/12/2007, -4/+6Actually, vulgrin, last I heard, the President was buying up land in Paraguay, just in case.
  
  http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,1928928,00.html
headzoo, on 10/12/2007, -6/+15While I hate the Bush administration for many things, I think it's particularly deplorable that they'd try to blame the victim in this situation.
spurtle, on 10/12/2007, -2/+11http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Tammany_Ring%2C_Nast.jpg
legatus, on 10/12/2007, -23/+8All do realize the Governor retracted her statement, and said if there were another simultaneous disaster the Kansas guard would be stretched thin. The original statement was simply an attempt to take advantage of the disaster to make a partisan attack.
- flernk, on 10/12/2007, -3/+12What?
TreeHuggerChick, on 10/12/2007, -4/+6Expected, but totally shameful. Once again, the federal response to a crisis is none at all and blame directed toward the wrong people.
mjd420nova, on 10/12/2007, -5/+8I see the biggest problem with the national guard is that too many of them are deployed to Iraq and Afganistan. These troops are not combat trained, their main training is in restoration of services in devastated areas caused by such natural disasters as flooding, tornado, hurricanes, earthquakes and tidal waves. Deployment of these troops to combat zones has left many states without adequate protection for these types of events. Bring those troops home now and replace them with combat troops.
evanmyers, on 10/12/2007, -3/+10Oh Kathleen Sebelius, how I love you. Let me count the ways:
You're a democrat in Kansas!
tsf5000, on 10/12/2007, -7/+19Does anyone really expect the Bush administration to accept responsibility for anything anymore?
- DRINKxREDxBULL, on 10/12/2007, -31/+10Does anyone really expect Democrats NOT to blame Bush for everything anymore?
- johnhummel, on 10/12/2007, -6/+14When Bush stops being responsible for things under his control, then people will stop blaming him.
- zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -6/+10@drinkxredxbull
  
  Is that the best you've got? Blaming democrats for showing the complete incompetence of the Bush Administration?
  
  How about you try to show that this is anyone's fault but the current administration. It must be embarrassing for you to try to make a case against Democrats when the Republicans keep digging a deeper hole for themselves. I love watching Republican lemmings walking off a cliff. It's too bad that the rest of the country has to suffer for the Republican actions (who had been in complete control of all three Branches until just recently). But finally, their war profiteering, do-as-I-say-not-as-I-do, corporate backscratching is catching up with them.
- Toshibi, on 10/12/2007, -3/+10@zeroeffect
  "Is that the best you've got? Blaming democrats for showing the complete incompetence of the Bush Administration?"
  
  It's not just the Bush Administration. It's the complete incompetence of government at large.
- zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -6/+7@Toshibi
  
  "It's not just the Bush Administration. It's the complete incompetence of government at large."
  
  I disagree, when they controlled all 3 branches of government, they had a blank check to do whatever they wanted. For six years they had a blank check and this is just one more black mark on a horrible record. So no, it is not all of the government at large. The focus should squarely fall on the people who had complete control for the past six years. To say government is broken and the two party system just isn't working is one thing, but to try and use that to focus the blame away from the ruling party for the past six years is wrong.
  
  Once again, Republicans were in complete control for six years.
- rthakidn, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2And to think, both houses of Congress have been held by the Dems for over 100 days. Plenty of time to say, "we're not funding the war, don't expect legistlation giving you the money". All those national gaurd troops would have been home. Shameful Dems!! Hey guess what? Its everyone's fault NOW.
- zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -3/+3"Its everyone's fault NOW."
  
  That is convenient isn't it. It takes a lot longer than 100 days to fix the mess created in *six years*. This was the Republican excuse everyone expected as soon as the Democrats took control. What's holding them back, maybe a President who is finally exercising a veto that he never had to use while (okay, once) before the Democrats took power.
  
  The Republicans are responsible for the six years they had a blank check in managing this country. It will take longer than that to restore this country to it's pre-Bush glory. So lets not try to trivialize the Republican responsibility.
edm1950, on 10/12/2007, -2/+7When are they gonna put the Ketchum Washington Group out of business ***** like this is a disgrace, and needs to be dealt with. It's time to send the whole Washington PR community to Gitmo they are more insidious than Al Queda.
TheToecutter, on 10/12/2007, -5/+3Annnnnnnd....let the finger pointing begin.

Typical government reaction. Instead of rolling up their sleeves and getting ***** done, they ***** point fingers at one another.
- edm1950, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2Seems the Boosh administration is trying to CYA. Looks to me like the state had it's infrastructure gutted by Boosh despite pleas for replacement. So first response is slow and of course compassionate conservatism is proving to be not be very compassionate and state remedies destroyed in the rush to downsize and streamline government. The whole concept of making the bureaucracy smaller as the population increases is the most insane thing I've every heard of, but then again I'm pro human not libertarian.
geekee, on 10/12/2007, -4/+8http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0227-02.htm
Bush Policies Are Weakening National Guard, Governors Say
February 27, 2006
totorototoro, on 10/12/2007, -4/+9"The Governor shouldn't have had all those tornadoes during a national crisis"
DRINKxREDxBULL, on 10/12/2007, -4/+6Brownback said Tuesday that local officials and the Kansas National Guard commander all told him they have the resources needed to respond.

Her spokeswoman (the governor's), Nicole Corcoran, said the governor didn’t mean to imply that the state was ill-equipped to deal with this storm. “We are doing absolutely fine right now,” Corcoran said.

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070508/ap_on_el_pr/brownback_tornado_2

http://hotair.com/archives/2007/05/08/ks-gov-tries-her-hand-at-disaster-chasing/
- FLUX, on 10/12/2007, -8/+5who'd thought think progress would lie and promote a story line that it pure fiction just for political points
  
  wow Im so shocked and amazed
  
  (tongue firmly in cheek)
- zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -6/+5@drinkxredxbull
  
  From the Yahoo article:
  
  "Maj. Gen. Tod Bunting, the state's adjutant general, said the Kansas National Guard was equipped to about 40 percent of its necessary levels, down from the 60 percent it had at the start of the war. About 850 soldiers have deployed to Iraq and
  Afghanistan."
  
  This doesn't sound like they have all the resources that they needed. And, the article is about Brownback disputing the governor's claim... for the record, Brownback is a *Republican presidential candidate*. What, you really believe he is going to agree that President Bush, a Republican, is destroying the country from the inside out?
  
  And what you left out from your earlier quote, not from the news article, but from the *Right Wing blog* was:
  
  "Her spokeswoman, Nicole Corcoran, said the governor didn’t mean to imply that the state was ill-equipped to deal with this storm. Sebelius’ comments about National Guard equipment were, instead, meant as a warning about the state’s inability to handle additional disasters, such as another tornado or severe flooding, she said."
  
  So they may be able to deal with the situation as is, but if something else compounds it, then they are basically SOL. Spin it however you want, but 40% of the necessary level sounds like they are woefully undermanned.
- DRINKxREDxBULL, on 10/12/2007, -6/+5Really? How do you know how many resources they need. 850 isn't a lot to be gone at once. I'm in the Gaurd, and I have been called up for two floods in MN. We certainly didn't have the entire Guard there. Even if 80% of our troops and trucks were gone, we could still respond to this tornado.
  
  BTW, who do you think subsidizes the NG? (hint: the Feds)
  
  That is not what they originally said. They claimed that, because of Bush, they DID NOT HAVE the manpower/equipment. When confronted with the facts, they had to say that as CYA.
  
  "For the record, Brownback is a *Republican presidential candidate*." And the governor is a Democrat. So that means she can't be trusted either?
- zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -3/+3No offense but I will trust a Maj. General's remarks above a Democrat, Republican or lower ranking National Guardsman. So here is the Governor and a Maj. General both saying they are running well below 50%, I'm inclined to side with them. Especially after seeing the response by FEMA and the National Guard during Katrina. It's a good thing Blackwater was there to help out with security. A legal privatized military? What better way to initiate it than by spreading military resources so thin that it is the only way to protect the nation.
- DRINKxREDxBULL, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Way to completely not address the issue. They could be at 20% strength and still be able to respond. Plus neighboring MO said they would send troops, but haven't been asked. Nice try with the red herring about blackwater.
- zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0If 20% is good enough (according to you), then why is the benchmark set so high? I'm sorry, but 40% of normal acceptable levels is not good enough. Clearly there is a problem. 20% is good enough for *one* tornado, wow, so what happens when the next Katrina happens? Whether it is in Kansas, Florida, North Dakota... The residents of New Orleans may question the preparedness of the National Guard. You are really trying to trivialize the issue. Simply put, the National Guard is thinned out to the breaking point, under equipped and being tasked with things they were never trained to do.
  
  As for Blackwater, why were there mercenaries in New Orleans after Katrina? Where was the suitably equipped National Guard? Let me ask that one again... Where was the suitably equipped National Guard?
  
  And before you try to dispute Blackwater's presence in New Orleans, here are Press Release from their website:
  
  http://www.blackwaterusa.com/press/katrina2.asp
  http://www.blackwaterusa.com/press/katrina.asp
CrudoMacDoogle, on 10/12/2007, -13/+5Ah liberals and your facts. . .

Currently, the Kansas National Guard has 88 percent of its forces available, 60 percent of its Army Guard dual-use equipment on hand, and more than 85 percent of its Air Guard equipment on hand, said Randal Noller, public affairs officer for the National Guard Bureau. Under the Emergency Management Assistance Compact, which is a national partnership agreement that allows state-to-state assistance during governor or federally declared emergencies, Kansas has more than 400,000 Guardsmen available to it, he pointed out. However, Kansas has not yet requested assistance from other states.

http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=33080

Never let facts stand in the way of of politicizing a natural disaster
- gigawatts2k, on 10/12/2007, -9/+5I love how suddenly anything with a legitimate source gets dugg down. However, if it has a ".org" or "progress" in the title it's instantly digg'd.
  
  According to the National Guard Commander, the equipment and man power is there, but nobody asked for it... she may have complained earlier, and got the equipment, but just wanted to smear the president's name just like all the other left wing looneys.
- djpinger, on 10/12/2007, -5/+2As far as I'm concerned, I don't trust anything I read unless it's validated by more than one source, outside of the pervue of those involved in the allegations. DoD being a government agency, by virtue, is involved in the allegations. Snow can't get his facts straight, I don't trust DoD to either.
  
  /tin-foil hat
- MacBastard, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6Whoa - 40% of their Army Guard dual-use equipment is missing or not available? That's the stuff they actually need during a natural disaster, i.e. vehicles and such. Tornado season doesn't let up until the end of June, and the numbers are already trending toward a heavy year with 268 tornadoes (as of today) in the US just this month alone. What's going to happen if Kansas gets sucker-punched again by another F5 or two?
  
  The Bastard
- CrudoMacDoogle, on 10/12/2007, -9/+3And surely validating by way of think progress and say . . . daily kos must make it true, and add in the daily show and ya got yer self a lock.
  
  So as far as I can tell, the democratic playbook is in play
  1) politicizing a natural disaster
  2) when presented with facts of response to said disaster deny legitimacy
  3) ?????
  4) profit
- djpinger, on 10/12/2007, -7/+1How do you know the 'facts' presented are or aren't true? I don't trust either side. Reps because they have lied way too many times, and the dems because they tend to jump the gun a bit too quickly for my taste.
  
  The problem is that people take their prefered party's statements as gospel, without doing more research into the situation themselves. Also doesn't help when one side or the other has a history.
  
  Cry wolf anybody? After a while, you stop believing them.
- zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -2/+5@crudomacdoogle
  
  That's funny, I just read the following:
  
  "Maj. Gen. Tod Bunting, the state's adjutant general, said the Kansas National Guard was equipped to about 40 percent of its necessary levels, down from the 60 percent it had at the start of the war."
  Afghanistan."
  
  http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070508/ap_on_el_pr/brownback_tornado_2
  
  Bottom of the article
- CrudoMacDoogle, on 10/12/2007, -3/+3djpinger-
  
  How do you know if your purple isn't my green. At least the government in this regard has some accountability in there are specific offices that hold the numbers that are released to account.
  
  One last point, not every single person who works in the government is a fascist bush supporter, so I would damn sure trust our gov long before I would thinkprogress.org
  
  I keep thinking about progress, but I never see it . . .
- zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -4/+2@crudomacdoogle
  
  Lets look at the republican playbook:
  1) Lie about WMDs in Iraq and invade
  2) Send billions of dollars "rebuild" Iraq in no-bid contracts (to Republican friendly Corporations)
  3) Have Haliburton and Blackwater massively overcharge the government on these no-bid contracts (don't need a ??? on this one)
  4) Profit
  
  Lets not forget about turning it into a terrorist hotspot in the process (go on, I dare you to say it was already one). That way you can keep the war (remember Mission Accomplished?) going on indefinitely. Now why should I ever trust a Republican again?
- CrudoMacDoogle, on 10/12/2007, -5/+5Seriously A ***** tornado, not uncommon here, hit a small Kansas town, which to most of you is flyover country anyway so why you give a ***** is beyond me short of making a political point to bash the president. This town is about 1500 people, it doesn't require 60 % or 40 % or even 5% of the KNG to help it back on it's feet.
  
  the point is
  STOP politicizing a natural disaster
- djpinger, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2@crudomacdoogle-
  
  They may have accountability, but they sure haven't stepped up to the plate and actually admitted a *damn* thing.
  
  And yes, I know that not everyone that works for the government is a subscriber.
- MacBastard, on 10/12/2007, -3/+3@crudomcdoodoo
  I'm not talking about this last time - I'm talking about the next time. What happens if a couple of F5's waltz their way through Wichita. NOW we're talking about the needing more than just 5% of the Kansas Guard. Try ALL of them, but they don't have the equipment they need.
  
  And don't give me that ***** about I shouldn't care because it's flyover country - I have relatives in the midwest, so I DO care about it. This quote tells me you're the one that doesn't give a *****:
  
  "Seriously A ***** tornado, not uncommon here, hit a small Kansas town, which to most of you is flyover country anyway so why you give a ***** is beyond me...."
  
  11 people died, asshole...
  
  The Bastard
- CrudoMacDoogle, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Not an asshole, I live not too far from the town and in fact my house was hit by the same storm and the next three days worth, we were lucky enough to only get flash floods.
  
  And yes I did make a generalization with the flyover remark, but here in the midwest it seems that the only time people care is when they use us for their political agenda, so i may be a bit jaded We get hit by tornados all the time in the spring, and the chances of two more f5's in Kansas this year is very remote, even so 40% of the KNG would be plenty to take care of it and 60% would overkill.
- eagle22s, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0since you all know so much about f5 tornado's tell me when was the last time a f5 hit ks and where?
- CrudoMacDoogle, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1ha that'd be Greensburg KS on 5-4-2007
- eagle22s, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0very funny, how about before Greensburg
slantyeyed, on 10/12/2007, -5/+5i'll take all this bickering with a grain of salt since disaster relief isn't the issue here. This is more about Dems and Reps.
SirBotchness, on 10/12/2007, -3/+4I guess the WH is thinking that if they fix this situation in a proper manner they would in turn be letting the terrorists win. Either that or they'll blame the tornados on Kathleen.

"well you should have tried to stop it before it even happened"
SouthsideIrish, on 10/12/2007, -5/+3I'm surprised the President hasn't yet used the provisions in the John Warner Defense Authorization Act of 2007 to mobilize another states national guard and send them to Kansas, since it is obvious the governor does not have the ability to handle this emergency.
twiceasworn, on 10/12/2007, -4/+5"According to the National Guard Commander, the equipment and man power is there, but nobody asked for it... she may have complained earlier, and got the equipment, but just wanted to smear the president's name just like all the other left wing looneys.".

Are you kidding me with this? No, no and no. How long does this ridiculous raping of the states resources have to go on until everyone realizes we are being totally ***** by this administration. You can not ignore the insanity going on right now. Louisiana is STILL a disaster area. That is crazy! That ***** should have been taken care of long ago. We are spread so ***** thin because of this "war on terror" (how you have a war on a word I'm not sure). I am so tire of people who refuse to look at what is going on around them. Our rights, resources and citizenship is slowly being eroded away by bills/legislation that are buried inside positive legislation. What? Are there riots in the street? No. Does the average American know that this is happening? No. Its a ***** shame. The people should control the government, not the other way around.
- gigawatts2k, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Louisiana is still in ruins, cause the people of Louisiana won't get off they're a$$es and do something about it. Look at the Mississippi and Alabama coasts, that actually were hit by the hurricane itself... they're already back and flourishing... know why, cause they didn't wait for handouts and got to work themselves. Louisiana was full of whiny beggars, and the folks that got out (either before or after) are the ones that wanted to so something with their lives and not wait for handouts... "I survived Katrina, and all I got was this T-Shirt, a lap dance, and a 52" plasma screen"..... sound familiar. Nothing against those who were victims, but they were victims of a Hurricane, not the Bush Administration... cause I don't think he has some kind of magic weather machine.
  
  All the privacy, rights and citizenship hasn't been eroded away. Are you living any differently? Sounds like somebody has been picking up on cliche's and buzz words.
- twiceasworn, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0@gigawatts2k
  
  No, actually I am just paying attention to what is going on in the world. The fact that our president can at any time declare someone a "unlawful combatant" (even a U.S. Citizen!) and they can then be detained with no charges, tortured and not given a trial by a jury of their peers makes me want to puke.
  
  I guess some people like having their rights trampled on, you may be one of them but I sure as hell am not.
- gigawatts2k, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2But where are the sources that you reference, to prove these detainments happen. And I'm not talking anything that has been spun, right or left.
  
  I almost don't believe either side, since there is always conflicting information, always from the extremities. But for everyone to post President Bush's name as the reason for every problem, is simply rediculous. Blame his advisors.... they're the ones that provide him with the information, and in this case, it's not even their fault. The governor should stop worrying about pointing her finger at somebody, and request some help from the surrounding states.... but instead she want's to bash the president, once again.
anotherspencer, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2there is a good write-up on a blog against the "antics" of the governor:

http://confederateyankee.mu.nu/archives/225570.php
Reksh, on 10/12/2007, -2/+4He's the Commander Guy he knows what his talking about :P
Nismobeach, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6I hate Sebelius, but I think that Tony Snow's comment was inaccurate. She never sent the National Guard to Iraq and it's not her fault that many National Guard troops also double as first responders in their civilian jobs.
- satanatnmtedu, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2She did not send the troops to Iraq. Governors do not make federal policy decisions.
zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -3/+6Why must the White House try to blame everyone else when they've had a blank check for the past six year. Effectively shaping this country any way they please?
- phatt-matt, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3It was the Kansas governor that made the charge. The White House is responding. The better question to ask is, "Why do liberals have to try to link every problem to Iraq?"
- zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1The better question to ask is, "Why do liberals have to try to link every problem to Iraq?"
  
  You're being over dramatic in saying every problem is being linked to Iraq... In this case it is being linked, well because so many of the National Guard troops are deployed in Iraq. Would you like to disputed that? Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, whatever... There are not enough National Guard left in the USA to guard the nation.
  
  For the record, Liberals link every federal problem to the Bush Administration... Why? Because they had a blank check for six years controlling all three branches of the government. Who else could be responsible?
trstar, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Life Lesson here -

Documentation is key to survival in insane organizations, or government.
inajeep, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Of course Tony wasn't aware of the documented requests. He may have never looked up the information but someone did.
The_Red_Monkey, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3Yup, its the federal governments responsibility to save everyone. Unless you want to legalize pot then stay out. You all are idiots. The national guard being called into an area of 10,000 people to rebuild does not require the whole states national guards soldiers. I have been through massive quakes in CA and never saw one guardsman here. And I was in a town of 150k near the epicenter. Whole downtown districts collapsed and you know what we did, we rebuilt and moved along without the the superfeds coming in to intercede. We used fed disaster funds and our own workers.

And for Zeroeffect who's name reflects his life's contributions
"Lets look at the republican playbook:
1) Lie about WMDs in Iraq and invade
2) Send billions of dollars "rebuild" Iraq in no-bid contracts (to Republican friendly Corporations)
3) Have Haliburton and Blackwater massively overcharge the government on these no-bid contracts (don't need a ??? on this one)
4) Profit"

Um, everyone said they had WMDs. Reports date back to the Clinton years. Those "republican" friendly companys spend a lot of money on Democrats as well. Once you realize all politicians are lying assholes you will be a lot better off.

Now you will say "OBama is not a paid off scum." Check into how he bought his last house. He is as dirty as the rest of Chicago politics.

And for the rest of you tinfoil hatters. A UFO cause the tornado and it was built by haliburton and flown by the Illuminati.
- zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0@The_Red_Monkey
  
  You're an angry, angry little man...
  
  Nice to see you didn't take my remarks out of context (and out of their thread) to help you try to make your point. You must have missed the direct reply to a similar argument (although much less factual) than mine against the Democrats.
  
  The main point which you have failed to miss about this whole topic is that the National Guard is at 40% of the levels it should be. This is why Katrina turned into the FUBAR'd mess that it was. This is why Blackwater was called after Katrina and how your tax dollars are being wasted -- overpriced contractors filling in for a National Guard that is stretched thin.
  
  Blah, Blah, but Clinton... Clinton didn't go to war over the assumption that WMDs existed. But thanks to the Bush Administration's fear mongering, and not waiting for "a smoking gun in the form of a mushroom cloud" he went to war. Nevermind North Korea, who has actually detonated a nuke! Why didn't he attack them? Why? Don't try to spin it... answer that question. It was a war of convince that is costing Americans billions in their hard earned tax dollars. And why did the number of people who though Iraq was involved with 9/11 jump from 3% to almost 50% even though their was no connection whatsoever?
  
  "Those "republican" friendly companys spend a lot of money on Democrats as well."
  
  Relatively speaking it is about $100 to Republicans for every $1 to Democrats. Of the ones who are directly benefiting from the war mongering and profiteering (Blackwater, Halliburton, etc...) so don't give me that line of BS.
  
  "Now you will say "OBama is not a paid off scum." Check into how he bought his last house. He is as dirty as the rest of Chicago politics."
  
  If this really is true you should be able to provide a link or two... but it's easier for lies to stand without proof that can be easily discredited.
  
  The Republicans had a blank check for six years controlling all three branches of the government. The blame is all theirs. Now a is time for a change and time to start rebuilding.
haueyman, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2"Why do liberals have to try to link every problem to Iraq?"

Because that is the only game they can play. All they do is complain, never have a solution just cut and run and then blame it on Bush and the WH.

Typical liberal crap.

I wished the sixties never happened, that is what we are dealing with here, the hippies are grown up now and think they have a voice. But of course in due time, Right will triumph over the wrong.

God bless America and God protect this country against Liberals and Terrorists.
- edm1950, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2Because conservatives have their heads too far up Karl Roves ass to see what's going on, so liberals have to describe the scene for them.
- zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2@haueyman
  
  You should really learn to reply to the actual thread...
  
  All you did there is call people names, and resort to fear mongering... rather than offer any sort of rebuttal, defending the actions of Bush and his Administration, all you can do is talk smack... Why? Because your ass handed to you whenever you try to stand on the facts. Your blind faith is what's ripping this country apart.
  
  The better question to ask is, "Why do liberals have to try to link every problem to Iraq?"
  
  You're being over dramatic in saying every problem is being linked to Iraq... In this case it is being linked, well because so many of the National Guard troops are deployed in Iraq. Would you like to disputed that? Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, whatever... There are not enough National Guard left in the USA to guard the nation.
  
  For the record, Liberals link every federal problem to the Bush Administration... Why? Because they had a blank check for six years controlling all three branches of the government. Who else could be responsible?
- jll3sonex, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2That's the way it's been for about the last 40 years - Democrats will never SOLVE a problem that can be used for campaign promise fodder. After the election, all the promises just drift away... Like Pelosi, and her 'most ethical Congress ever' promise and how she was going to be real effective. Enough people believed the Democrat's promises pre election to get the Dems in control, yet all of a sudden...
  
  Nothing...
  
  Ever...
  
  Gets...
  
  Done... (except for earmarks for THEM, of course...)
  
  But they've ALWAYS got a good excuse for nothing ever happening!
scottelloco, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1That's interesting that Tony Snow would say this on behalf of the White House because this article from April 17th, 2007 (before the tornado) sites Gov. Sebelius as stating:

-----
http://www.emporiagazette.com/news/2007/apr/17/who_defends/

According to Guard officials and Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, the demands of the first mission — represented now by the long war in Iraq — are making it increasingly difficult for the Guard to reliably carry out its second mission.
-----

This took about 30 seconds for me to find. I'm sure someone with better research skills and who's a government insider (like Tony Snow for example) would be able to find many more references to Gov. Sebelius' feelings on the matter.
- scottelloco, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Here's another quote from Gov. Sebelius in Feb 2007:
  
  http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/04-19-2007/0004569586&EDATE=
  
  Lack of equipment hurts National Guard's readiness back home in Kansas. "Currently, about 16 percent of the Kansas National Guard's equipment, valued at over $117 million, will not return to Kansas. With the potential for the amount of equipment left overseas to double, [Governor Kathleen] Sebelius is concerned about the impact this will have on the Guard's primary mission back home." (Kansas City InfoZine, 2/13/07)
- scottelloco, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Here's another quote from April 14th, 2007:
  
  http://www.joplinglobe.com/statenews/local_story_104000955.html
  
  “The training centers provide a great opportunity to bring Guard and first responders together for ongoing training, because we know that’s the team that’s called on to respond,” Sebelius said. “Proper training not only enhances the safety of our Guard members and Kansas first responders, but it helps them protect us.
  
  “And right now, we’ve got some real gaps here in Kansas.”
- scottelloco, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Here's another from April 14th, 2007 that directly contradicts Tony Snow's statement. Tony was smart enough to add the qualifier "not aware of" to his statement in order for it to not be an outright lie:
  
  Sebelius says war saps Guard strength at home
  More governors have expressed worries about their ability to respond to domestic disasters.
  http://www.kansascity.com/153/story/70213.html
  
  TOPEKA | Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius says she fears deployments of Kansas National Guard troops and equipment could hurt the state’s ability to react to disasters on the homefront.
  
  Her remarks this week, which were similar to ones she had made in the past, came as more governors criticized Washington’s use of Guard members in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. National Guard personnel are under the dual command of the president and the governor in their home state.
  
  The criticism coincided with the Pentagon’s announcement that it would call up about 13,000 additional Guard members for active duty next year. Kansas now has about 1,000 Guard troops serving in Iraq, Afghanistan and on the Mexican border.
  
  Sebelius, a Democrat, said she was concerned Kansas may be left vulnerable if the nation continues to rely so heavily on Guard troops.
  
  “This is a growing problem and a huge homeland security issue,” she said.
- zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1It's really too bad these aren't closer to the top of the page but damn, that is some fine work discrediting Mr. Snow.
Krishjen, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0'Bout time we got dem Tornadoes - like I'm the Tornado Killer Guy. Go W
MacintoshSauce, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1Didn't you guys know that is the neo-con plan with the National Guard? Get most of them out of the US while Bush and his neo-con fascists implement the police state we are seeing unfold before our eyes.
- zeroeffect, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1That, or more plausibly, to increase the profits of Blackwater:
  
  http://www.blackwaterusa.com/press/katrina2.asp
  http://www.blackwaterusa.com/press/katrina.asp
endtyranny, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Playing politics during an emergency is just low. Let's not repeat Katrina.
goarmy06, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1So any of you naysayers have any brilliant ideas as to how to fix this problem? I mean....there IS a war going on right now...
FrostyTheDMan, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Anyone else notice that every damned story that is up on ThinkProgress is posted here?
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White House Blames Gov. Sebelius For National Guard Shortages

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