I do not believe he issued the Insurrection Act.
Federal troops were brought in, and can be by the government, as long as they don't "enforce the law," they don't violate "posse comitatus."
Discussion on Fox News tonight, and even an interview I heard with General Honore would have me believe that the Insurrection Act was not invoked. Honore indicated that his troops were there to assist and the National Guard would do the enforcing, that leads me to believe that posse comitatus was still in place.
Good website with ins and outs of Insurrection Act, posse comitatus, etc.
http://www.homelandsecurity.org/bulletin/Primer_ChallengestoPreventionandPreparedness.htm
I hope not, or an awful lot of people are going to have a fight with their insurance companies to collect on their insurance policies.
I agree with you. Despite the entire bent of this article, it is speculation.
I do not believe that President Bush has actually federalized any of the National Guard to date. I believe the Governor of LA is as yet still refusing to consent to that. And Pres Bush chose NOT to get into a confrontation with Blanco or any of the other Governors, at this time, by using insurrection as a justification. Confrontation is not Bush's style (except with our enemies)
Reading between the lines and listening to what the DoD is briefing and watching who is doing what, it appears the President's planners have developed a command arrangment using parallel organizations. The National Guard under Command of the Governor of LA and her State Adjutant General, and a Joint Task force commanded by General Honore and reporting to Northern Command, and under operational direction of FEMA.
To avoid posse comitatus complications, the active duty units assigned under the JTF Katrina are assiduously avoiding any armed action in support of security or law enforcement. For example, it has been reported that the 82d airborne is operating without weapons. Security and law enforcement operations are being done by the Guard and whatever NO police and perhaps other auxiliary civilian police units have been pulled into the operation.
An item of chatter in the NRO corner indicated that National Guard assets are embedded with JTF Katrina active duty units as necessary to provide for armed security the active duty soldiers cannot by law perform.
Apparently the Governor Blank-0 grew a set and finally formally ordered the Guard to provide armed law enforcement support, perhaps on Friday or certainly by Saturday when the air bridge and helo evac rescues began. It seems the National Guard in LA did not have this authority or did not believe that they had it, until late in the game. Thursday or Friday.
I believe the lack of an order by the LA Governor to her National Guard to provide security is why the people of NO were trapped for so long in the SuperDome and Convention Center, and in the besieged hospitals, at the mercy of human wolves, and why few assets under any type of unit organization were willing or able to engage in widespread rescues in flooded areas until Thursday or later. Most would-be rescuers were ordered to stand down until security could be assured after some were shot at.
Even if they could pluck people from their houses, there was no safe landing zone to drop the people off. Helos couldn't even resupply the 25,000 peopel trapped in the Superdome and Convention Center because the aircraft were rushed by mobs as soon as they tried to set down. Supplies that were dropped, were looted by the human wolves.
And it seems like Governor Blanco allowed this to go on for 48 hours, without an order to the Guard to intervene, while the press on scene cried in horror and blamed "the Government" (ie, President Bush)!
The entire tone of the NO operation changed on Friday, when the National Guard rolled in with force and General Honore arrived on scene. Order was seized at the shelters and the people were fed and given water, and then were evacuated in total on Saturday.
I think the President will welcome an after action investigation of this operation when the crisis subsides. I would very much like to see the paper trail of the orders that the Governor issued to the National Guard. What she ordered them to do, and when.
And I applaud the President's team working out an innovative command and control organization to meet the demands of this crisis, save the lives and property of many NO citizens, and I think that he is a fair and gracious leader for getting the job done while saving "face" for this incompetent State Governor.
Bush was, after all, a Governor himself as well as a member of the National Guard (that much derided draft dodging rich man's faux miltary, according to the libs), and I think that his personal experience helped in this situation.
And I think this will raise some hard and necessary questions about our Constitution and further amendments that may be necessary to assure swift competent command and control in event of the next large national emergency on our soil that requires military involvement.
jmho
I agree. The military's role in this instance is rescue/recovery efforts not law enforcement which belongs to the national guard and local law enforcement.
Bttt