[TheRealVille]

4 p.m., Oct. 30, 2012 — One of the problems politicians face, when claiming to want to cut government, is that occasionally the importance of having a strong, functioning government becomes vividly clear—like after a giant hurricane. That complicates things in a way that can be mighty awkward, as Mitt Romney is finding out today.

Last year, during one of the GOP presidential debates, Romney seemed to indicate that he wanted to cut or even privatize the Federal Emergency Management Agency. At the time, his comments barely made a ripple. Now, with FEMA leading the rescue efforts after Hurricane Sandy, the question of what Romney would do with the agency if he were to become president suddenly seems a lot more salient. And suddenly Romney doesn’t want to talk about it, presumably because the prospect of gutting the budget for first responders or pushing them into the private sector wouldn’t be very popular when they are breaking their backs to help people after the hurricane.

Throughout the day following Hurricane Sandy’s landfall, reporters traveling with Romney have asked him what he’d do with FEMA—they asked him 14 different times, according to this report—and he has refused to answer. The question is all the more awkward because Romney has recast today’s campaign rally as a “storm relief event.”

Consider the transcript (PDF) from the CNN/WMUR debate in which Romney issued the following exchange about FEMA:

“JOHN KING: What else, Governor Romney? You’ve been a chief executive of a state. I was just in Joplin, Mo. I’ve been in Mississippi and Louisiana and Tennessee and other communities dealing with [disaster], whether it’s the tornadoes, the flooding, and worse. FEMA is about to run out of money, and there are some people who say, ‘Do it on a case-by-case basis,’ and some people who say, you know, ‘Maybe we’re learning a lesson here that the states should take on more of this role.’ How do you deal with something like that?

“ROMNEY: Absolutely. 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 ourselves the opposite question. What should we keep? We should take all of what we’re doing at the federal level and say, what are the things we’re doing that we don’t have to do? And those things we’ve got to stop doing, because we’re borrowing $1.6 trillion more this year than we’re taking in. We cannot—

“KING: Including disaster relief, though?

“ROMNEY: We cannot afford to do those things without jeopardizing the future for our kids. 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.”

—Joshua Green

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/201...id-of-fema

[Hoot Gibson]

I hope so. FEMA is an extremely inefficient agency that is a constant victim of fraud, waste, and abuse.

[TheRealThing]

I hope so. FEMA is an extremely inefficient agency that is a constant victim of fraud, waste, and abuse.

LOL, they've pocketed more money than P T Barnum, and for the same reason, "there's a sucker born every minute"

[Hoot Gibson]

LOL, they've pocketed more money than P T Barnum, and for the same reason, "there's a sucker born every minute"

Early in my career, I sometimes supervised a UMWA dozer operator who worked on a coal refuse impoundment in Mingo County who became a millionaire doing work on the side following the 1977 flood. FEMA had not yet been created but some federal agency made him a millionaire over a short period of time. Unfortunately, he decided to continue working instead of retiring and he was a difficult employee to say the least. He enjoyed reminding me that he did not really need the job, but I was stuck with him. nicker:

FEMA has made many people wealthy. All that disaster assistance does not make it to the real victims.

[Benchwarmer]

I hope so. FEMA is an extremely inefficient agency that is a constant victim of fraud, waste, and abuse.

No way. lol

[Beetle01]

Let's hope so.

I do believe there is a role for a "FEMA" and that is to help coordinate resources between different states, and if necessary give money directly to the states to spend on the ground. FEMA should have no active role on the ground, their role should be one of assisting in communication of needs of supplies between different areas of the country, helping provide transportation if needed of said supplies, and monetary assistance which goes directly to the states who then deal it out, obviously any system is going to have flaws, but I believe the more when can keep the people making the decisions at the local and state level, the less waste and more efficient that system will be.

Let's say a wildfire breaks out in KY, and is getting pretty big and obviously dangerous. It is likely that KY Fire/EMS/Disaster services are not well equipped or experienced to deal with such a thing, however, those in CO and CA are obviously very experienced. The state of KY would put a request for help controlling the fire to FEMA, who would then help CA and CO coordinate their resources and personnel to get them to KY quickly.

That should be about the only role of FEMA, other than being the route in which the Fed. Govt gives financial assistance to disaster areas (by giving it to the states)

If this was there only task, I think it's safe to assume they could be fairly efficient at that.

[Hoot Gibson]

Let's hope so.

I do believe there is a role for a "FEMA" and that is to help coordinate resources between different states, and if necessary give money directly to the states to spend on the ground. FEMA should have no active role on the ground, their role should be one of assisting in communication of needs of supplies between different areas of the country, helping provide transportation if needed of said supplies, and monetary assistance which goes directly to the states who then deal it out, obviously any system is going to have flaws, but I believe the more when can keep the people making the decisions at the local and state level, the less waste and more efficient that system will be.

Let's say a wildfire breaks out in KY, and is getting pretty big and obviously dangerous. It is likely that KY Fire/EMS/Disaster services are not well equipped or experienced to deal with such a thing, however, those in CO and CA are obviously very experienced. The state of KY would put a request for help controlling the fire to FEMA, who would then help CA and CO coordinate their resources and personnel to get them to KY quickly.

That should be about the only role of FEMA, other than being the route in which the Fed. Govt gives financial assistance to disaster areas (by giving it to the states)

If this was there only task, I think it's safe to assume they could be fairly efficient at that.

Good post, Beetle. I think that the federal government should also play a role in disaster relief when the federal government causes or precipitates a disaster, such as the collapse of a poorly designed, federally-funded levee or dam. Also, in the event of a terrorist attack, military attack, or damage to interstate transportation systems - I think that there is a role for the federal government to provide relief.

[TheRealVille]

Now a Romney campaign spokesman says that Romney doesn't want to get rid of FEMA. Is this just another one of his flip-flops? It's hard to keep up with which side of his mouth he is talking from. nicker:

[vector]

Now a Romney campaign spokesman says that Romney doesn't want to get rid of FEMA. Is this just another one of his flip-flops? It's hard to keep up with which side of his mouth he is talking from. nicker:

whoever he is talking that's the side he is on got no balls

[WideRight05]

^ I'm sure you two boyfriends like to do a lot of "guy" things...snuggle together, gossip, read books, hold hands and walk the park, and....oh yeah, talk about Romney!

[outdoorsman43]

Even the hurricane is getting politicized. During a GOP primary debate, Mitt Romney was asked about FEMA’s budget problems. He said anytime you can take something from Washington and send it back to the states or the private sector, that’s the right direction. Now, a liberal group has dug up that quote and is using it to accuse Romney of wanting to do away with the federal disaster relief agency. Romney’s people say he never called for cutting FEMA’s budget; he just meant it’s better for local officials to direct disaster response. It is odd, hearing liberals suddenly defending the efficiency of FEMA. What a difference a change in Presidents makes! Let me just add, that as a governor myself, I appreciated any support from Washington in times of emergency. But I’d rather that it be managed by those of us who know where it needs to go than by a bureaucrat a thousand miles away who couldn’t even find Arkadelphia on a map.

From Mike Huckabee's "The Huckabee Report":

I don't feel like me commenting is necessary. nicker:

[TheRealVille]

Hopefully Cantor and Boner don't try to hold the emergency funds hostage this time.

[TheRealThing]

Hopefully Cantor and Boner don't try to hold the emergency funds hostage this time.

In other words you're still not interested in the truth as posted by outdoorsman.

[TheRealVille]

In other words you're still not interested in the truth as posted by outdoorsman.

They were the ones that wanted to withhold funds for Irene, until they found out where the cuts to pay for emergency funds were. Fox/ Huckabee truth? Puuuuulease. I'm sure Washington will direct funds where Christie, and the people that register for it, need it.

[TheRealThing]

They were the ones that wanted to withhold funds for Irene, until they found out where the cuts to pay for emergency funds were. Fox/ Huckabee truth? Puuuuulease. I'm sure Washington will direct funds where Christie, and the people that register for it, need it.

And it will go right straight through the STATE of New Jersey's government. And no, you're right RealVille, your own personal credibility is head and shoulders above Rick Huckabee. Thanks for reminding us. :igiveup:

[WideRight05]

And it will go right straight through the STATE of New Jersey's government. And no, you're right RealVille, your own personal credibility is head and shoulders above Rick Huckabee. Thanks for reminding us. :igiveup:

TRV has an amazingly high credibility, I heard he once convinced a mirror that he wasn't there.