Not so independent investigation?

In summary, the Bush administration is trying to spin the news that G.W.Bush will allow a committee to investigate why the help to New Orleans was so ineffective. The president is supposed to lead the committee himself, but he doesn't want an independent commission. His approval ratings are tanking, but there will always be people supporting him. The WH is furiously trying to spin the news.
  • #1
EL
Science Advisor
558
0
Heard on the news that G.W.Bush was going to let a committee investigate why the help to New Orleans was so ineffective, and what could have been done better. This sounds like a perfectly good idea. However they also claimed that he would lead this committee by himself! :bugeye: Is this true?
 
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  • #2
I predict some people will like this idea, completely disregarding their previous position when they disagreed back when Hillary suggested it.
 
  • #3
For those who knows Swedish:
http://www.aftonbladet.se/vss/nyheter/story/0,2789,695206,00.html [Broken]

Translated introduction:

The American president George W Bush will personally lead an investigation about what was good respectively bad about the federal help efforts.
But he didn't want to have any independent commission.

Sixth line from below:

But he didn't even respond on the demands of an independent commission. The president wants to lead the investigation himself.
 
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  • #4
I also suspect it will come up with everyone being responsible except bush.
 
  • #5
I really can't believe this is true. Is it?
 
  • #6
I hope that no one's stupid enough to let him lead the investigation. Hey, while we're at it, maybe we should let Ken Lay investigate the goings on at Enron. We can also put Bin Laden in charge of the 9/11 Commission.
 
  • #7
Even if he will not be allowed to lead it, the Americans must now really think about what kind of president they have. Even just suggesting something like that, I really can't believe it...I really can't...
 
  • #8
Smurf said:
I also suspect it will come up with everyone being responsible except bush.

Well, everybody except his own administration and appointees.

He's already said he won't fire Brown and thinks he's doing a wonderful job.

Frankly, I'm not the least surprised.
 
  • #9
EL said:
Even if he will not be allowed to lead it, the Americans must now really think about what kind of president they have. Even just suggesting something like that, I really can't believe it...I really can't...

If it's any consolation, his approval ratings are tanking.

That said, there will always be plenty of people supporting him and doing anything they can to keep from admitting that he's a failure.

The WH is furiously, absolutely furiously, trying to spin this thing. They have been since last wednesday, they'll keep doing it.

Expect more of it in the future.
 
  • #10
Of course, it couldn't be 'cause the boss is angry.
 
  • #11
TRCSF said:
He's already said he won't fire Brown and thinks he's doing a wonderful job.

Translated from the link above, line 11:
George W Bush seems to be satisfied with FEMA. During an inspection this Friday he was according to AP heard to say to Brown:
- Brownie, you are doing a damn good job.
 
  • #12
EL said:
Translated from the link above, line 11:
George W Bush seems to be satisfied with FEMA. During an inspection this Friday he was according to AP heard to say to Brown:
- Brownie, you are doing a damn good job.

Ridiculous, isn't it? At the WH press conference this morning somebody asked McClellan if he thought Brownie was still doing a good job. LOL.
 
  • #13
Although, this is the same man who gave George Tenet the Medal of Freedom. If there's one thing that I've learned about this administration, it's that they reward incompetence.
 
  • #14
I actually don't know what would be worse, that he came up with such an idea, or that the Americans will buy it.
If our Prime minister had tried something like that he probably would have been put to work in the mines for the rest of his life (with his shoe laces tied together).
 
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  • #15
Manchot said:
Although, this is the same man who gave George Tenet the Medal of Freedom. If there's one thing that I've learned about this administration, it's that they reward incompetence.

Medal of Freedom, hmm.
It's like that all countries with names including "Democratic" never are so...
 
  • #16
Any investigation should be done from outside of the Whitehouse. Let the Corp of Engineers do it. There is a much greater chance that they will be truer to themselves and true to the nation. But there is no guarantee.

Who do you good people think should do the investigation?
 
  • #17
solutions in a box said:
Who do you good people think should do the investigation?

Some grad students from MIT or some other high profile engineering school perhaps? I am certain the school would be interested in taking the job because it suggest the government trust them to do the job, which will look good, and they could use the money.

It looks good for the government because, well, do I even have to say?
 
  • #18
solutions in a box said:
Who do you good people think should do the investigation?

Indepenent Council.
 
  • #19
EL said:
I actually don't know what would be worse, that he came up with such an idea, or that the Americans will buy it.
If our Prime minister had tried something like that he probably would have been put to work in the mines for the rest of his life (with his shoe laces tied together).
As usual foreigners and intelligent Americans understand this shows Bush's unethical cover-up mentality and the obvious 'conflict of interest' in overseeing a probe into actions (or lack of action) of his own administration. You are rightfully shocked, but unfortunately there are Americans who would buy it (the same ones who still believe WMD were in Iraq but moved, and that we invaded Iraq to fight 9-11 terrorists for example?).
 
  • #20
EL said:
Translated from the link above, line 11:
George W Bush seems to be satisfied with FEMA. During an inspection this Friday he was according to AP heard to say to Brown:
- Brownie, you are doing a damn good job.

Anybody see that video? Brown looked a little embarrassed when the President said it. I leave it to the viewer to decide whether he was just embarrassed from the attention or something else.
 
  • #21
EL said:
Medal of Freedom, hmm.
It's like that all countries with names including "Democratic" never are so...

:rofl: The Democratic People's Republic of America :rofl:
 
  • #22
EL said:
If our Prime minister had tried something like that he probably would have been put to work in the mines for the rest of his life (with his shoe laces tied together).
Oh I wish we could do that here (maybe if I visualize it, it will become reality...or if not, It'll be a nice visual just the same :tongue: ).
vanesch said:
:rofl: The Democratic People's Republic of America :rofl:
There's such a thing as a Medal of Freedom? I mean...well I'll just leave it at that.
 
  • #23
SOS2008 said:
There's such a thing as a Medal of Freedom? I mean...well I'll just leave it at that.

Yes, there's a Medal of Freedom. Bush awarded it to Tenet for all the work he did on investigating WMDs in Iraq, after it was found out there weren't any WMDs in Iraq.

I don't know if the medal had any credibility before, but it sure doesn't now. That's like giving the Nobel Peace Prize to Osama bin Laden.
 
  • #24
TRCSF said:
That's like giving the Nobel Peace Prize to Osama bin Laden.

Or like giving it to Arafat, Perez and Rabin... :rofl:
oh wait, that was already done... :bugeye:
 
  • #25
Informal Logic said:
As usual foreigners and intelligent Americans understand this shows Bush's unethical cover-up mentality and the obvious 'conflict of interest' in overseeing a probe into actions (or lack of action) of his own administration. You are rightfully shocked, but unfortunately there are Americans who would buy it (the same ones who still believe WMD were in Iraq but moved, and that we invaded Iraq to fight 9-11 terrorists for example?).

I have now had a good nights sleep, but I still can't understand how this could happen? In a country who claims to defend FREEDOM...I really can't get it no matter how many times I think about it.
How come that so many just seem to accept this? How come the president hasn't been fired yet? How come the americans have not stormed the White House?
I really don't want to think most americans are stupid, but could someone then explain to me how a statement like this could be accepted by the public?

In fact it would be nice to here what Russ Watters has to say about this?
 
  • #26
solutions in a box said:
Who do you good people think should do the investigation?

The important thing is to have people from different backgrounds in the committee. Like one republican, one democrat, one person from FEMA, one journalist, one priest, one New Orleans citizen, one foreign representative from UN, and so on...and the leader must of course be politically unbounded.
 
  • #27
It's pretty obvious that Bush publicly announced that he would conduct a PERSONAL investigation only to reassure Americans that he STILL (to the supporting half) holds power and credibility. It's crucial that he becomes the central person in this investigation for he also wishes to reinforce the idea that he's a responsible president.
 
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  • #28
TRCSF said:
Yes, there's a Medal of Freedom. Bush awarded it to Tenet for all the work he did on investigating WMDs in Iraq, after it was found out there weren't any WMDs in Iraq.

I don't know if the medal had any credibility before, but it sure doesn't now. That's like giving the Nobel Peace Prize to Osama bin Laden.
I know, I was going to make a joke about the Medal of Freedom in general, in that it seems to be a fake medal to praise the fake.
EL said:
I have now had a good nights sleep, but I still can't understand how this could happen? In a country who claims to defend FREEDOM...I really can't get it no matter how many times I think about it.

How come that so many just seem to accept this? How come the president hasn't been fired yet? How come the americans have not stormed the White House?

I really don't want to think most americans are stupid, but could someone then explain to me how a statement like this could be accepted by the public?
First is the problem of political activism being viewed negatively in the U.S. Then there is preoccupation with day-to-day survival in American life, and many who are spoiled and self obsessed in this process. To get people to be appalled enough to demonstrate means pulling them away from their jobs, running their errands, and watching their favorite TV show. So though protests do occur regularly, these are often small and rarely get media attention--I think Cindy Sheehan has been the first to get on the news, not to mention getting Bush's attention (there's an achievement!).
 
  • #29
solutions in a box said:
Any investigation should be done from outside of the Whitehouse. Let the Corp of Engineers do it. There is a much greater chance that they will be truer to themselves and true to the nation. But there is no guarantee.

Who do you good people think should do the investigation?
I nominate Russ and Astronuc.
 
  • #30
SOS2008 said:
Oh I wish we could do that here (maybe if I visualize it, it will become reality...or if not, It'll be a nice visual just the same :tongue: ).
There's such a thing as a Medal of Freedom? I mean...well I'll just leave it at that.
Yes it is the highest civilian honor the government can bestow. I guess you have to preside over the biggest intelligence failure in history, or fix the the facts and intelligence to fit a predetermined policy or both in order to qualify.
 
  • #31
DM said:
It's pretty obvious that Bush publicly announced that he would conduct a PERSONAL investigation only to reassure Americans that he STILL (to the supporting half) holds power and credibility. It's crucial that he becomes the central person in this investigation for he also wishes to reinforce the idea that he's a responsible president.
:rofl: :rofl: If he wants to portray himself as responsible I have an idea...How about assuming responsibility!
 
  • #32
Well Georgie's little ploy didn't work. Within the day his announcement to oversee a probe was criticized and other investigations are to take place. This Katrina disaster isn't giving him the camouflage that 9-11 did, and now his ratings are such that he is exposed to scrutiny. Perhaps what comes around goes around, eh?
 

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