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May 3rd, 2010
11:00 AM ET
Is oil spill President Obama's Katrina?
(CNN) – The ruptured undersea well off Louisiana is spewing about 210,000 gallons (5,000 barrels) of crude a day into the Gulf of Mexico. And efforts to corral the rapidly growing oil spill have so far been unsuccessful.
In the past few days, some of the focus has shifted to the White House and whether it sprang to action soon enough to make a difference. Some critics are calling this "Obama's Hurricane Katrina." Our Jim Acosta has the report.
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cnn.com is where all you liberal lu-lus come to agree with each other.
in case you don't understand the premise of the article, it refers to whether the enlightened One will be blamed for his poor response–not comparing the two catalysts–Katrina and the spill.
the answer is, YES, despite his propaganda machine saying he acted "from day 1"... he is a talker and not a doer unless it is to further his socialist Marxist regime. It's TEA TIME!
Unlike Katrina, no one could see this coming. The dawdling and stupidity of Brownie and Bush was a view of the underbelly of Republican ignorance. This disaster is entirely BP's fault and BP's responsibility. There is no reason Americans should have to pay for it.
No, This is not Katrina. There was no warning for the oil spill. As American we blame everything on the president or anyone else for our fails. The Financial crisis is the we American overextended ourselves, trying to keep up with the Jones. Look at the man in the mirrors. American companies outsource due to it cheaper. They do not have to deal with unions, My mother worked for Exxon for 30 years. American companies are not loyal to their employees as they did 30 years ago. Education is not just the teachers responsiblity. The parents need to take active role in their children education, helping kids with homework and making sure they do their homework. Students need to me partipate in their education. We American are so lacks about education, library are free, our children do not take advantage of the opportunities available to them.
NO! This spill is CHENEY'S KATRINA! Under the Bush-Cheney Administration, all kinds of rig regulations and safety measures were ignored, waived, or simply bypassed! Some of these people were literally in bed with regulators who were supposed to make sure all possible safeguards were in place. This acoustic switch that might have made a difference only costs half a million! BP made $6 BILLION in just 3 months.
Its definitely Obama's fault. According to the GOP (Republicans) everything is Obama's fault. Obama is the Anti-Christ and hates American, why wouldn't he let the oil destroy the Southern coast. Letting the oil destroy the Southern Coast is just the beginning. Eventually Obama will destory the US. He will implement laws that allow people to marry there horse, he will implant micro chips into folks who use the new National Health care, he will implement a new law requiring abortions, he will ban all religions except Muslim.
See how stupid the above statement is. This notion that Obama is to blame for everything is stupid. In today's society people don't want to think or read for themselves. They want to be told what to think. So Rush Limbaugh says this is Obama's Katrina, and folks run with it. Katrina and the Oil slick are two different events. For those who want to blame Obama, please explain what steps he should have taken to prevent the issue. The oil slick occur about 100 miles off the coast for one. Second, until the leak is fixed the oil is in the water and there is only a few ways to remove the oil from the water. There isn't much a person can do once the oil gets into the water, they only thing that can be done now is stop the leak and they begin to remove the oil from the water.
Bush was inept in his response to Katrina. He had warning.
Obama was singing the praises of off shore drilling not more than a few weeks ago. And NOAA had been warning of catastrophic dangers in off shore drilling. Obama has been inept in his preparation and response to what was just a problem waiting to happen.
All of those trying to blame the president for not responding fast enough cannot answer one simple question. What was the government supposed to do faster that it has not done?
We watched people dieing on television during Katrina, We watched McCain and Bush eating birthday cake while people where dieing. The governments response to the oil spill has not killed anyone. The Bush repsonse did. That is to big a difference to try to paint them as similar events.
lets see katrina 1500 wellfare recipients or bp a dozen hard working americans i think we can thank bush helping to reduce new orleans budget deficits
I am amazed that the oil leak (not spill because it is still leaking) in the gulf coast has been put on the back burner in the media. I visited CNN.com just to verify that this crisis is not getting the attention it deserves, and I was disappointed to find this major story listed more like a footnote on the web page while the headline read, "What do those dreams mean?" I will agree, in defense of the media, there hasn't been much development to report on since this leak began more than a week ago, and unfortunately that is the larger issue.
As the leader, the man, the one in charge – blame is automatic whether you want to believe it or not... His name will forever be tied to the BP Oil Spill !
This is not comparable in the slightest. 1. BP was indicating no OIL leak until late Wed of last week then changed to 5000 gal a day on Thursday then on Friday discovered it was 5000 barrels a day. Since he Obama has known of the level of disaster he has taken appropriate steps.
2. Bush had 3 days warning of impending trouble before a Cat 3 then becoming a Cat 4 hurricane hit ground. Once on the ground he did not take a proactive stance once local leaders had called FEMA and the WH for help.
They are apples and oranges really...
It's the fault of that chick who campaigned for VP by chanted: "Drill, baby, drill."
I forget – What was her name?
Para Salin or something...
The spill is the result of a private industry mishap and BP is solely responsible. Katrina and her effect on the gulf states was due to a lack of pro-active federal and local efforts to shore up the levies.
We're so worried about sympathizing with ILLEGAL immigrants for actually having to obey the law, that we're forgetting about the devastation of our OWN CITIZENS in Tennessee.
What a stupid question. How disappointing that a major news outlet would even dignify this headline with a minute of media time. CNN has successfully put itself in the same ball park as the National Enquirer. Strong work, guys.
CNN, you should be ashamed for presenting this ridiculous article!!!!!
Sure, he was the one that said "You're doin' a great job Brownie"....wasn't he?
No.
The only ones saying that are those who are trying to get back at the Dems for criticizing Bush's handling of the response to Katrina.
That's how the right wingers work, unfortunately. if we criticize their politicians for legitimate lapses in judgement and competence, then they desperately look for a Dem to criticize for some imaginary problem.
No there is no way to compare this to Katrina and it is stupid to to.
Can't have it both ways – is the govt too big or isn't it? Come on repubs please stop talking out of both sides of your mouth.
uh, no.
How about some smart questions like...
Is this the event that changes our laws and policies about off-shore drilling?
Will BP ever be held accountable for all of the deaths and spills they have caused around the world?
Will regulators, the same ones that granted BP 200+ regulatory exemptions on this well alone, finally enforce the laws that are on the books?
Will the politicians who granted the oil industry's wish for a $75 million cap on damages from any single off shore spill be held accountable?
It's a ridiculous comparison. Katrina was a natural disaster, to which Bush barely responded. The oil spill is man-made and Obama IS responding, there just isn't much he can do. Conservatives will use anything to make noise... unbelievable.
Obama acted immediately upon getting verifiable information. Bush and co. dithered for days, and never got a reasonable response into play. The nonsense being shoved into the public eye, and, of course, now magnified into 'seriousness' by the ever hungry media, is pure political junk, fantasy 'conspiracies' and weird claims of negligence or worse.
It is time for the news media to actually vet some of these more fringe claims...at least understand that not every time somebody stands up and accuses Obama of some new connivance, that said claim deserves equal billing. Please. To even waste our time with a story like this is insulting.
As an American living and working abroad I am constantly astonished and dismayed by the publicity received by the consistently immoderate, rude, inflammatory, intellectually dishonest rhetoric of radio talk-show hosts like Rush Limbaugh.
How is it possible that Limbaugh's ridiculous one-liner: is the BP "oil spill [President] Obama's Katrina" should be repeated over and over again in the presumably responsible press?
Fox News is beneath contempt, but even comparatively responsible CNN has lowered their journalistic standards since the glory days of Bernard Shaw's reports on the first Gulf War...
No, the spill is not his Katrina. To equate this properly, Nashville is Obama's Katrina, since we blame natural disasters on presidents. The only thing left now is for a white celebrity to proclain that 'Obama doesn't like white people.'
the oil spill in Mexico would surely be one of the greatest environmental disasters for this year.,`~
What a completely irrelevant question for a "trusted" news outlet to ask!
This reeks of being just another instance of CNN trying to milk as much drama & conflict out of a story as they can-and for what? Ratings?
When they get to the investigation stage of this disaster I for one will certainly want to know more about the role of Halliburton in installing and maintaining the "fail-safe" valve. Bush & Cheney if you recall are both oil men and Cheney was CEO of Halliburton. If a sweetheart deal was made with BP in exchange for lax federal oversight on offshore rigs it's now time for heads to roll!
Why doesn't anyone muster up a whole bunch of people and start doing something about this? Surely someone could organize some effort to help start containing this! Don't we have enough rich people to sponsor it?
Dumbest. Question. Ever.
So....are the floods in TN Obama's fault too? come on media – you can do better than this.
Ludicrous.
OK, this is just getting ridiculous. Katrina was a natural disaster that was made worse by the levis failing (which was a man-made disaster thanks to mistakes made by the Army Corp of Engineers). There were all kinds of computer models which predicted the hurricane. FEMA and Bush both underestimated the effects and then Bush had to be shown footage of 3 days of the disaster for it to sink in. Come on folks, this President anticipates, listens and acts. There is just no comparison. Maybe we just don't recognize leadership when we see it because we were without it for 8 years.
Yes this is President Obama's Katrina. How's he doing?
Did I end up on Foxnation by accident?
C'mon, no comparrison to Katrina. What, should he have donned scuba gear and closed the well himself. It might be the only thing he could do to shut the critics up.
It is completely irresponsible to compare the two. Entirely different scenarios!
Katrina:
Many deaths – very tragic, yes; but avoidable. NO-one should be living below sea level. Period. If you do, YOU take the risk.
Just like those who live next to the ocean. HELLO! Erosion & Hurricanes WILL happen – it's not the Fed's (or our) responsibility to bale you out because of your decision to live there.
Key note: The states TOLD the Feds to back off during Katrina – and it's ACTUALLY the LAW that the Feds CANNOT get involved until the states request them to – regardless of the perseption by the public.
This oil spill should have been contained MUCH earlier/imediately. Obama failed miserably. No excuse!
the cnn folks constantly say " some say that.."............is Obama's fault. without ever saying who "some" is. John Roberts does this all the time. Makes me wonder is CNN becoming a jr fox??
NOAA had adopted a plan for just such tragedies back in 1995. Why didn't Obama enact it and probably keep the oil slick under control at the source. Was it an intentional act or is Obama's incompetence showing through.
And just as sweeping Energy and Cap and Trade regulations and reforms were scheduled to be debated and voted on in the US Senate to place the brakes on Big Oil, Big Coal and America's addiction on fossil fuels the Republican party pushed the Apartheid Arizona State Immigration law forward in a bum rush fire sale.
I for one do not think this sudden racist State Immigration law by the Republican lawmakers in Arizona was a mere coincidence as the deep sea Oil spill created one of the largest heavy crude Oil ecological disasters in modern history.
The sudden appearance of the Apartheid Arizona State Immigration law appears entirely to be a planned and orchestrated effort by the Republican lawmakers to force the Obama administration away from working on and passing strong and sweeping regulations on Big Oil, Big Coal and America's addiction to burning fossil fuels.
The White House should just clear everything up by blaming Bush, the Tea Party, and Conserative Talk Radio. Works most of the time.
Remember the ad See the USA. I think we all should before it's gone. That will be on my bucket list. Before it's too late.
One difference is that Bush's FEMA director, Heckuvajob Brownie, was appointed for political reasons, as a reward for his campaign contributions. He didn't have any experience or expertise is disaster management. So when one actually happened he had no idea what to do. Furthermore, the FEMA budget had been gutted for several years before Katrina hit. Republicans get elected by arguing that government, by nature, is incapable of solving problems, and when Republicans in power they make it a self-fulfilling prophesy. Regulatory agencies in Republican administrations don't regulate anything because they're headed by people who don't believe in regulation. It's that simple.
No, it's not his Katrina. The health care reform was and the lies he continues to spew each day are.
In case you missed it on Larry King or maybe Anderson Cooper last night, it turns out that in 2003 Dick Cheney told BP they did not need the special fail safe that the rest of the world uses on their offshore oil wells. Possibly as a result of Exon Mobile's lobbying in Washington?
Also reported, the explosion may have been caused by faulty concrete or concrete pouring by our old Iraq favorite Haliburton.
It is Obama's fault we are in recession, his fault homes are in foreclosure because they borrowed more than their home was worth, his fault because the American public over used their credit cards, Obama's fault there are floods and tornados. Of course it is his fault!
It is not Katrina, it is Chernobyl.
Two failures here. First, what caused the explosion on the drilling platform? Second, why did the blowout preventers not work? Beyond that, there isn't much anyone could have or has done. Trying to blame Obama for it is absurd.
FEMA should have been on top of this from the beginning. Their multi billion dollar budget is there so they can respond to emergencies on land or in our coastal territories. Drilling is not new. We've been doing it for decades and a plan should have been in place. Safety equipment was in place to prevent this kind of accident but we need to find out why it failed or if it was deliberately saboutaged by some "cockroach" that thinks it is OK to damage the Earth and sea to make a point. I hope this is not the case. Let's also not forget, at least 11 people died and still haven't been found that I know of.
Why were they given the okay to drill without researching safety measures and what the plan would be in case of a spill disaster? Here we go putting the cart before the horse. Who is Salazar and does he really know anything about the interior?
And yet, this specialized equipment is available at every navy base, I guarantee, as well as probably every coast guard base as well. Very likely at any commercial port, too, just in case there's a spill in the water there.
All it would have taken is a phone call or two, and all the available floating boom could have been transported to NOLA, along with any oil dispersant out there.
I'd be willing to bet there's enough C-130's and C-17's sitting in air bases across this country of ours, that would have been perfectly capable of doing the heavy lifting.
Is it entirely Mr. Obama's fault? Certainly not. But did he do everything he could have done, as early as he should have done it. Also certainly not.
Not only that ... the first reports from the scene were that there was no significant amount of oil being leaked. It was only a few days later that officials recognized the extent of the problem. This is a foolish comparison, and one of the many examples why this once-great news network is in the state it's in.
NO, there you go again, CNN. Give Obama a rest. Get OFF his back. Did Limbaugh put you up to this crap??????????
What could Obama have done? It's not like an "on-land" natural disaster where he can send in troops, food, and supplies. This is an on-the-water massive oil spill. It takes specialized clean-up equipment that he couldn't just go purchase at his local WalMart.
The oil spill is NOT a natural disaster. It was human error, plain and simple. As we drill more, we'll see more of these types of incidents. Get used to it people... Humans are destroying the earth, faster than you think.... We are the true cockroaches of the earth.
if it is, then kanye west says, 'barack obama doesn't care about pelicans.'
I bet George W. Bush and Dick Cheney are On the Beach, in Louisiana ,with Mason Jars, waiting for the tides to roll in!
Is oil spill President Obama's Katrina? Only if if appoints a buddy of his that used to run some horse stables to take care of the problem. And then after his buddy does a crappy job, the tells the world what a great job he did. Then this would be be his "Katrina". It's not having an unexpected disaster on your watch that makes you look bad, it's how you deal with the disaster that shows your character.
No, it is not his Katrina but Limbaugh, many Republicans, Fox News and now even CNN seem to be trying to make it seem that way. I guess the controversy makes for more lightening rod emotions and stories. That is too bad because it cheapens the coverage of a really important environmental story. MSNBC seems to be covering it pretty fairly right now.
the last i checked there are no people stuck on the roof tops or crowded in a football stadium with no food or water, or even working bathroom .calling this katrina is being insensitive to the poor men and women who lost everything they owned,not even picture for memory.have people forgotten those images of katrina that soon? i suggest they review the images before they compare the two.
No. Katrina was the name of a hurricane. A hurricane is an act of nature. This blow-out was caused by the failure of a blow-out preventer... a piece of equipment. Obama nor any of the members of Congress are petroleum engineers or deep ocean drillers. It has nothing to do with politics; it's the oil business – and the people who work in it are the only ones who can fix it.
Let's see. Obama's Katrina doesn't really ring the Republican bell. It reminds us of Bush and Katrina, which is not something we want the hayseeds to be remembering.
"Obama's Waterloo" has some potential. I can see Obama's face photo-shopped with Napoleon's hat and uniform. We could forget all sense of history and put him on a sinking ship: "The USS Socialist."
A quick peek at the thesaurus suggests "Obama's Adversity," "Obama's Calamity," "Obama's Apoplexy," and "Obama's Catastrophe" and those all have their charm.
So, Conservatives, shove those phrases into your pie holes and see if they fit.
Anyone with half a brain can see this falls at the feet of BP and the company it hired to drill the well. The government can really not do a lot to stem the flow of the oil that has to be done by industry experts and the depth at which the well is makes that a difficult task indeed. The bet that President Obama can do is to provide the resources and assistance for the sometimes futile effort to keep the oil off the beaches. And to help with the cleanup. Beyond that he must hold BP's feet to the fire for the costs. All of the the things he could be doing, he already is.
Is oil spill President Obama's Katrina? Yeah right... you which! It's quite obvious the only one's asking are conversatives that have come to this realization that the only way they can win back control of the government is to discredit this administration; and oh boy have they tried with every stunt, lies and deception! For one who has been following this crisis very closely from the shores of New Orleans, I would like to remind these idiots that it was this president that authorized the search and rescue efforts that saved the lives of several workers the same day following the explosion of the platform that finally sank beneath the ocean. Infact, the search and rescue effort was also authorized by this president to continue for several more days in attempt to find the other eleven workers that are now presumed dead.
There is no question that this massive oil spill in the gulf is a result of BP's failure or inabilty to shut-off their well 5000ft below surface. Infact, this takes us back to Bush/Chenney energy bill where a provision that would have made it manditory for all offshore drilling to install automatic shut off valve for the pumps, and subject such valves to manditory inspections, was denied by Dick Chenney citing it would be much too expensive for the oil companies... So is this Obama's Katrina? Nice try!
Comparing this oil spill to Katrina is not only absurd, but it is insulting to those who were affected by the response to Katrina. For one, Katrina was a major disaster that was forecast several days in advance. While, the severity was no known until the hurricane struck, President Bush was well aware of a major hurricane about to strike the US. And yet, it took days for his administration to begin a remotely adequate response and over a week before a true national effor began. In the case of this spill, the full extent was not known initially because of BP's reluctance to provide all the information. Once the size of the potential catastrophe was known, the Obama administration and the Coast Guard began a massive response. Could they have done more earlier, maybe, but that is certainly not comprable to Katrina.
Why blame the President? It is BP's fault. Shouldn't they have had emergency plans in place? They should have started clean up and capping of the well as soon as the fire was out. Not the President's fault. Stop blaming Obama for everything that goes wrong.
To compare the oil spill to Katrina is pure stupidity. These two events are uncomparable as the effects of Katrina were far quicker and affected A LOT more people. Obama is doing far more than Bush ever did.
You are kidding, right? It looks from here that everyone and their dog is on site, working for a cure. The fact that huge problems are not usually solved with the push of a button is a subtlety only those outside the beltway and the media can grasp.
Please assign reporters who understand the problems they are reporting. The two parties of idiots create enough confusion without adding more buffoons.
Thanks so much,
An Engineer
Only a conservative would compare a man-made disaster to an act of God! That's probably why they all thought it was okay to invade Iraq for 9/11 when every one of the highjackers were from Saudi Arabia.
Why should the federal government spend taxpayers money to help with shutting down BP's oil well? Why are the tea party people not picketing when the President is telling the American people that he will use all resources available to help assist with this disaster?
The reason why America is so divided is because of stupid questions like this.
NO!!! The oil spill is NOT President Obama's Katrina.
President Obama acted accordingly to this matter; and I believe that President Obama is the Greatest President that this country has ever had.
President Obama is the BEST EVER!
I think the slow followup on THIS story is CNN's Katrina – however my late post on the slowness of this story is MY Katrina.
I'm glad CNN is quoting the highly reputable Rush Limbaugh when they refer to "some critics are saying". He's been such an accurate, reliable source historically.
There is a serious difference between the response to Hurricane Katrina and the oil rig disaster in the Gulf of Mexico.
Katrina was a natural disaster that was made worse by decades of no investment in our infrastructure. We knew for days it was coming. We let a city drown anyway, until Corporate America could sink their collective claws into no-bid contracts. It was what, a week before the Feds saw fit to take notice?
The oil rig disaster in the Gulf was man-made. Perhaps BP saw it coming, maybe the government should have as well, but there was no way to predict this one (insofar as where and when). The federal response was immediate, adaptive, and continues to grow and evolve to meet a challenge that may take on global proportions. Even CNN's own reports early on in the disaster show the Feds were actively involved in trying to assess the scope of the disaster, what was needed, and how exactly to respond.
There is no real comparison here. CNN needs to stop assuming the American public has collective ADHD when they push bogus reports like this, which are derived from GOP and neoconservative talking points.
Katrina was a natural disaster, The oil slick was created by man's thirst for oil. The residents of La. were ignored for to long and human suffering was a black eye on America. The oil slick belongs to BP. The President can hold them accountable and monitor cleanup.
no way, the left-wing media won't touch this guy whether or not he's guilty.
as for bush and katrina, the blame falls squarely on the former LA governess. she was unprepared. having lived through multiple huricanes, it's common knowledge that no federal aid can be expected for at least 72 hours. bush was unfairly chastised for the failure(s) of the former governess. btw- i was at mardi gras 2 times when proposals to upgrade the levee around N.O. was shot down by the voters of N.O. sometimes we ARE our own worst enemy. that was certainly the case for the residents who voted against the referendums in N.O. notice you never heard that from the left-wing media types such as this bunch and msnbc. i'm sure they just overlooked that tiny bit of info. ;>)
Did anybody check for metane gas detectors on the OIL RIG that burned. Perhaps the high concentration resulted in some of the crew
being incompacitated.
That may have might have contributed to the disaster. Remenber the recent coal mine disaster?
Why don't they build the box sleeves around the oil pipeline (down to ocean floor) while they are placing the oil platform in the ocean?
How can this be a Katrina? For one, the oil spill was a man-made disaster that was acted upon immediately by both BP and the Coast Guard. Katrina was a natural disaster which we had at least 5 days advance notice on.
NO! Katrina was a disaster because of the terrible loss of life and poorly built levees. This oil spill was the fault of a major oil company and the cause has yet to be determined. The government who allowed this to happen without safeguards in place, shares some responsibiulity. Obama cannot be blamed for it. All of the existing oil wells were built before he took office.
It's ridiculous in the extreme to even suggest; flat out offensive how you would insult our intelligence by posing such an absurd question. The oil is leaking out a mile beneath the surface of the ocean. Our navy's best subs can't make it that deep. The robots we'd use at those depths don't exactly have arms, hands and fingers folks. We just don't have the technology to deal with it.
Yes, oil spill is the President's Katrina. He is still gung ho on building oil rigs and wind turbines now in a new area, the Atlantic Ocean and ruin popular fishing and eco plants and animals there. Let him build them in Hawaii. Right now there will be nothing for our childgren, grand children to see anymore. And I believe is Senator Ted kennedy were still alive there would not be the approval of the 180 wind turbines in Nantucket sound. What a view. Fish, Lobsters what's that?
In a word: Yes. But, how he does or does not rise to the occasion is, of course, critical.
Waiting nine days to go down, and partially filling the interim by dropping the "F" bomb at the correspondent's dinner wasn't a good option.
If his footprint would've disrupted recovery, he should have gone down – immediately – to one of the many military bases on the Gulf coast. His presence in the region would have sent a powerful signal to the country
Meanwhile, the other catastrophe of the energy sector - the coal mining disaster in West Virginia - has been blown off the front page. To demonstarte his own committment here, Mr Obama should have tapped his brother-in-law - Coach Craig Robinson - to be his personal ombudsman. Even as the departmental professionals investigate the tragedy, Mr Obama could really demonstrate his own committment with this- and the assurance that Coach Robinson would be phoning him nightly, in the residence, with his latest findings and observations.
INDIANAPOLIS
Of course not. This is a man-made disaster that already has a group of people responsible for its cleanup. It's called BP. And, if Obama/government had come in from the very start there would have been more erroneuos cries of "socialist interference." Second, being told by those people responsible for cleaning up the mess (since it appears to be their own after all) that the mess is bad, but not horrible, only to find out later that they were wrong (or dishonest) and it is indeed worse than they said, and that it indeed may actually need government assistance does not mean that the President's response was innapropriately stalled, but based on the most current information at the time.
To compare an oil spill to Americans starving to death in the streets is absurd.
This is where politics will definitely play a part in this. Katrina was a force of Mother Nature that hit the Gulf coast and devestated an area. Because of this both Liberals and Conservatives were quick to say that help was needed. The disaster of the oil spill was not done by Mother Nature but by a company that conservatives support. In conservatism 101 they believe that Government should stay away from companies that are simply trying to make money and stop bailing them out so it will be interesting to see what their stance is to this company basically messing up the Gulf coast. Will they cry to "The Government" to step in and help or basically tell BP to clean this up, you messed your own bed now clean it? But this man made problem can't even compare to the problem of Mother Nature.
If it was his Katrina, he'd be laughing and clapping his hands and shouting "See what happens when you don't vote for my Party?" while he let them suffer. Instead, he seems to be actually doing something. Let's see if he appoints a buddy and tells him "Doing a good job there Brownie."
I'm sorry – how many people are dead from this oil spill? Just the couple guys working on the rig that exploded?
Okay, tell me how this is in any way parallel ot the thousands of deaths from Hurricane Katrina?
I can't even believe people are trying to make this a legit comparison. Shows how much they valued the loss of life during Katrina.
You're kidding me. Blame this on Obama?? The only blame rests on BP. They have the billions to clean it up and fix the problem, not the taxpayers.
I think everyone should be held accountable and responsible and pay for this oil spill. I'm talking about the designers, architects, contractors, Councilmen, Representatives, Senators, Governors, Presidents, BP, Haliburton, the company who hired the personnel to run the rig..........I mean EVERYONE! Signatures had to be signed to something to make the rig happen. Signatures belong to someone whose pockets got FULL from this rig, now you want to destroy my life and happiness, destroy the eco system for my children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren. FINE, YOU ALL CAN PAY FOR THIS CLEANUP, NOT JUST BP OIL. I hope someone out there has the money to go after all of you and take everything you have made off of that rig to clean up our beaches. Money can never replace the unforgiving diaster that will be bestowed upon our wildlife and our eco system.
NO, the bush administration screwed up the Katrina response about as badly as it could. This adminstrations response has been about right. If the republicans politicize this accident it will likely backfire on them.
Ridiculous. Katrina: natural disaster exacerbated by gov't incompetence, bad human behavior. Oil disaster: triggered by human/corporate error, exacerbated by nature.
This is one of the dumbest headlines that I have seen all year.
Maybe this is the downfall of BP? Maybe this is a wake up call for the "drill, baby, drill" community?
But this is not a disaster that the government could have stopped from having. This is not the government abandoning it's citizens for days without water in the summer heat. This is not the President waiting for days to even visit the area.
Get your stuff together, CNN, and stop pandering to the right.
No.
It's a stretch.
Katrina was a hurricane.
This disaster is completely man-made.
This president went into action. W sent Brownie.
Katrina was a natural disaster. The oil spill was caused by a business. Not sure how Obama can be blamed for "taking over private business" and not responding to a business-caused disaster at the same time. BP gets all the blame on this one.
Funny how the same people complaining the Fed government is all bad are now criticizing the Fed for not doing enough. Even if Obama removed the oil with his bare hands, the Republican spin would find a way to bash him. Funny how little you hear the Repubs blaming the company who actually caused the spill, BP.
Basically, they are blaming Obama to deflect blame from their good friends at BP just like they are blaming Obama for the actions of wall street under their stewardship. Unfortunately or fortunately depending on which side your on, it works!!!
No, it's BP's Katrina, they knew it would leak, they are the oil experts.
This is so UNLIKE the Bush response to Katrina that I am trying to understand exactly what Acosta is reporting on here.
Frankly, I think its nothing more then trying to create journalism rather then reporting on it.
This administration has been on top of this every step and to imply otherwise is nothing more then a total misrepresentation. I expect better from CNN. Let FOX do this....from them we expect it this sort of dribble.
What?!! It might, possibly, maybe, (but not really) be equated with Katrina IF 1,500 people were killed by it, if President Obama waited three days to even respond to it, and if it was a natural disaster and not a Halliburton screw up. What kind of yellow, journalistic headline is this? You media people love to stir the pot, don't you?!!
this is hardly the same. first of all, there was plenty of warning about katrina and the impending disaster. the government could have been very proactive as opposed to reactive. the oil spill came with no warning and when it did surface BP provided reassurance that they could handle it and it was BP that passed on misinformation about the actual magnitude of the accident. once it was clear it was catastrophic the government intervened.
The Oil spill is not President Obama's Katrina. However, he has been blamed for everything else that has happened. The economy, the bailout, Iran, Iraq, terrorism,etc. The voice of opposition (Rush) has already declared that it is his Katrina. We just have to wait and see how many people from the GOP will follow his lead. He says what they want him to say so they can denounce it or not say anything. It is called politics.
no unless he just doesn't use common sense to respond.
liberals blamed Bush for Katrina .... and overlook the fact that our entire mass casualty game book was built around the local taking action first then the county, then the state and then the federal government.... with the each successive level only responding when the lower level government entity made an official request. The states not the federal government blew their responsibilities.
conservatives know that accidents take place and people need to respond.
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BP recently told the government that the private oil companies could monitor the safety issues themselves.
BP also under reported the severity of the spill by 80%.
When Pres. Obama finally received the correct information about the spill he moved rapidly.
This is another failed example of allowing the private sector run the country.
Absolutely; every man-made and natural disaster that happens any where in the world should properly be traced back to President Obama – after all, as the elected leader of the US, he is the leader of the free world!
So, even though BP has taken the rightful blame and responsibility, even though the administration has been proactive and transparent in dealing with this situation, those of us on the moral high ground can (and must) see how this administration is to blame. BTW, this is also to be blamed for the Icelandic volcanic eruption and the ash cloud that should down transatlantic and european aviation.
God bless America, especially His own folks in the right wing!