This is leadership on the front lines, not just on the sidelines. Louisiana GOP Gov. Bobby Jindal has been working non-stop over the past month to protect his state from the BP/Deepwater Horizon oil spill — and from the bureaucratic delays in the Obama administration.
Click on the image to watch the video of his latest press conference as Gov. Jindal explains what he is doing to contain the damage:
Here is the Emergency.Louisiana.gov page with extensive updates and resources on the state’s emergency response to the crisis, dating back to April 22.
Via NECN:
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) said the state will not waiting for federal approval to begin building sand barriers to protect the coastline from the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.
Oil has pushed at least 12 miles into Louisiana’s marshes, with two major pelican rookeries awash in crude.
Gov. Jindal was critical of the amount of boom his state received to ward off the oil seeping toward the coastline. But his major gripe comes at the expense of the Army Corps of Engineers, who have yet to give the go-ahead for the building of sand booms to protect the Louisiana wetlands. He used photographic evidence of oil breaking through hard booms, soft booms and another layer of protection, before being finally being corralled by a sand boom built by the National Guard.
“It is so much better for us. We don’t want oil on one inch of Louisiana’s coastline, but we’d much rather fight this oil off of a hard coast, off of an island, off of an island, off of a sandy beach on our coastal islands, rather than having to fight it inside in these wetlands,” Gov. Jindal said, making the case for sand booms.
The governor said he has been forced to protect Louisiana without the approval of the Army Corps of Engineers, which is weighing the ecological impact of the construction of more sand booms.
“We are not waiting for them. We are going to build it,” Jindal said.
At least one federal official is taking some responsibility:
The oil mass continues moving west, and as the toxic sludge begins to make landfall in Terrebonne, Capt. Edwin Stanton, who heads up the Coast Guard’s response, is taking blame.
“The governor is right. It’s too slow, and if it’s anybody’s fault, it’s mine, for not pushing (BP) hard enough perhaps,” Stanton said.“We did have a problem with getting boom down here to begin with, but there seems to be boom that is in the staging areas that needs to be put out.”
Then, in an exchange with a reporter, he went further.
Stanton: “It’s my job to direct this response in Louisiana.”
Reporter: “Why didn’t you do it?”
Stanton: “Well, the why — is that really important?”
Reporter: “Yes sir, we live here.”
Stanton: “Well, I guess I’m just slow and dumb.”
It’s a start.
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More: Jindal is scheduled to speak with President Obama in a conference call later today.
Put the boot on their necks, Gov. Jindal.
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Obama has sent the Justice Department to look at the oil spill. Inquiring minds want to know: Are they going there to uncover things…or cover things up?
comments (70)
"If ever one wanted to see inaction and a lack of effectiveness of the federal government in responding to a catastrophe, this is it. How long before it’s pointed out that Obama’s administration hasn’t a clue? I’m sorry, I meant to say, how long before there is outrage at the Obama administration? "
"Obamao will not take a hit for the Regime response. The doofus people that love him will never be convinced the man child President ever does anything wrong."
On May 22nd President Obama’s West Point speech described the new “international order” he was trying to build; one founded on multilateral action in contrast to the unilateralism of the past. He described security in unusually broad terms. No longer did it simply consist of the mere prevention of war. It now included managing nature, feeding the sick and helping the distressed. Obama set forth the goals of “countering violent extremism and insurgency; stopping the spread of nuclear weapons and securing nuclear materials; combating a changing climate and sustaining global growth; helping countries feed themselves and care for their sick; preventing conflict and healing wounds” as the objects of security. To achieve these goals he would use cooperation and diplomacy. The
Chicago Sun Times had a full transcript of the speech in which Obama laid out his vision:
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(22) Comments
"Where you are constantly asked to apologise for yourself, there are only two outcomes – the incredibly shrinking man (and I mean male, Whiskey), or revolution. Hopefully through the balot box."
'Obama is not interested in “soft power”; he is interested in “has no power.” The Ayers/Wright form of radical leftism is not interested in the “United States of the KKK” becoming a soft power: they interested in a “world without America.”
Obama is simply looking for China to give him an exit, an excuse to do nothing.'
Posted by Jim Hoft on Monday, May 24, 2010, 12:17 PM
This is a big F-ing deal…
Joe Biden praised Brussels today for being the “capital of the free world.”
Via BreitbartTV and Eyeblast:
Joe Biden praises Europe:
“As you probably know, some American politicians and American journalists refer to Washington, DC as the “capital of the free world.” But it seems to me that this great city, which boasts 1,000 years of history and which serves as the capital of Belgium, the home of the European Union, and the headquarters for NATO, this city has its own legitimate claim to that title.”
