The political world is not a Disney movie. Not all stories end with a handsome prince or finding true love. Sometimes politics gives you the wicked witch instead. Hurricane relief and the specter of impeachment are two cases risking the witch effect.
The role of government suddenly had a new meaning to those who believed no good comes from Washington, DC. Those who once shouted states rights and were and deficit hawks, suddenly found themselves demanding federal money no matter what the impact was to federal finances. Harvey and Irma gave them a dose of reality. Sometimes only the federal government has resources to deal with the magnitude of a disaster.
Ideologically driven dreams pre Harvey and Irma proved foolish when the Administration advocated reducing the ability to respond to natural disasters as part of budget and regulation reductions. President Trump presented his budget wish list to begin October 1 in the form of a “blueprint”. In it, he asked for. $667 million to be cut from from the FEMA pre-disaster mitigation grant program and require all grants to be matched by non-federal funds.. Even before Harvey, there was evidence that $1 in mitigation saves $4 in later damages. The budget proposed by the Trump administration for forecasting hurricanes has a 17% cut.
More foolishness: Trump’s proposed budget called for the elimination of the federal flood insurance program which made flood insurance affordable. I recall a good friend who survived Katrina and who had that flood insurance and was able to rebuild even though his home was severely damaged.. While only 20% of Harvey’s victims have flood insurance, it will be their welcomed salvation. It is not only coastal areas that benefit , but in Denver parts of the neighborhood in which I once lived were on floodplains that qualified for the subsidized, underwritten insurance. Floods are not unknown in Colorado like Boulder and northern Colorado experienced in 2013.
The left’s dream is that Donald Trump will be impeached. Reasons I suspect are mostly politically motivated.to stop Trump’ agenda of dismantling the Obama legacy, his racism, or a contempt for his persona. Alone these are not the “high crimes and misdemeanors” standard for impeachment in the Constitution. Whether he is fit to serve refers to the 25th Amendment and the process to determine fitness.. Former Director of National Intelligence James Clapper added gravitas to the impeachment movement when he questioned Trump’s fitness, calling Trump’s Phoenix post Charlottesville divisive speech “downright scary and disturbing”. . Heavyweight Democratic leaders have differed from impeachment advocates. In August Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D) California proposed “ patience” for Donald Trump to learn and said he could become a “good “ president.. David Axelrod, former Obama adviser, opined that with 30% plus of voters still supporting Trump, an attempt to impeach him could be viewed as a bloodless coup and a danger to the constitutional process. In June, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi told impeachment talkers to “calm down” and wait for “solid proof”. That makes sense. . The most credible proof of misdeeds or exoneration is Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s investigation of the Russian connection. Any sabotaging of the investigation by Trump or the GOP should be fought tooth and nail.
http://www.denverpost.com/2017/09/08/hurricane-forecasting-is-a-casualty-in-the-war-on-climate-science/
https://www.yahoo.com/news/everybody-baffled-trump-rescinding-flood-protection-rules-senator-says-165246845.html
http://billmoyers.com/story/dangerous-case-donald-trump-robert-jay-lifton-bill-moyers-duty-warn/#.Wb1WldCZgGI.email
http://eliotdaley.com/why-donald-trump-lies-so-much/
http://time.com/4875093/donald-trump-goldwater-rule-history/
https://www.yahoo.com/news/everybody-baffled-trump-rescinding-flood-protection-rules-senator-says-165246845.html
http://billmoyers.com/story/dangerous-case-donald-trump-robert-jay-lifton-bill-moyers-duty-warn/#.Wb1WldCZgGI.email
http://eliotdaley.com/why-donald-trump-lies-so-much/
http://time.com/4875093/donald-trump-goldwater-rule-history/
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