I pledged some time ago to stop commenting on natural disasters that seem so commonplace these days.
Naturally, I convey my condolences to the loved ones of the 24 people who died when massive tornadoes ravaged the entire suburb of Moore (just outside Oklahoma City) yesterday. I also extend my thoughts and prayers to the hundreds injured and thousands otherwise affected. The death toll includes many children who were caught at their elementary school, and it is expected to rise; not least because many are still missing….
A similar outbreak hit Oklahoma on May 3, 1999, killing 36 and injuring hundreds. However, preliminary reports indicate that this might be the worst in U.S. history – in terms of death, injuries, and destruction.
But the real reason for publishing this commentary is to help hoist a few Republican politicians by their own petard.
No doubt you recall the way the Republican governor of New Jersey, Chris Christie, went ballistic when his fellow Republicans attempted to sacrifice displaced residents of his state at the altar of fiscal austerity in the aftermath of last year’s Hurricane Sandy – the second-costliest hurricane in U.S. history.
Christie led politicians from all of the areas Sandy devastated in duly questioning how these Republicans would feel about emergency federal assistance if their respective states were hit by disaster.
Well, that day of reckoning came yesterday in Oklahoma for many Republicans – but most notably for notorious fiscal hawks Senators Jim Inhofe (left) and Tom Coburn.
As frantic rescue missions continued Monday in Oklahoma following the catastrophic tornadoes that ripped through the state, it appeared increasingly likely that residents who lost homes and businesses would turn to the federal government for emergency disaster aid…
Sens. Jim Inhofe and Tom Coburn, both Republicans, are fiscal hawks who have repeatedly voted against funding disaster aid for other parts of the country…
In a December press release, Coburn complained that the Sandy Relief bill contained ‘wasteful spending,’ and identified a series of items he objected to, including ‘$12.9 billion for future disaster mitigation activities and studies.’
(Huffington Post, May 20, 2013)
Given this, you might think these self-righteous guardians of the nation’s purse would be worried about having to explain to victims in their state why any federal funds to help them recover and rebuild would be wasteful government spending. And, accordingly, that they will not be lobbying for any emergency federal assistance.
Except that they are no different from the self-righteous (and self-appointed) guardians of the unborn who repeatedly vote against abortion rights until a member of their family gets knocked up with an unwanted pregnancy. Therefore, I fully expect these senators to find an exception to their rule that enables them to lobby for federal funds for their residents/voters just as vigorously as Christie lobbied for his.
I know this because – what Christie and others apparently did not know is that – both Inhofe and Coburn are on record repeatedly lobbying for federal disaster relief funds for their own state of Oklahoma, which ranks third in the nation after Texas and California in terms of disaster declarations.
Friggin’ hypocrites!
On a more consistent and truly principled note, President Obama called the Republican governor of Oklahoma, Mary Fallin, to offer whatever federal emergency management assistance (FEMA) her state needs. Truth be told, I’m sure he’s relieved to have the media turning their obsessive, herd-like, tunnel-vision coverage on this movie-like twister instead of searching for scandal in every nook and cranny of his Administration.
On the other hand, the beleaguered NBC TODAY Show can’t catch a break. It was supposed to be deflecting from its personnel and ratings woes by taking the show on the road this week to such exotic (and ratings-boosting) places as Hawaii. Instead, Matt Lauer, Al Roker, and Co. are stuck in Oklahoma foraging amidst tornado rubble, along with reporters from every other news organization in the country, only to report the same survival stories everybody else is reporting … ad nauseam.
NOTE: The plains of Oklahoma and Kansas, between the Rocky Mountains and Appalachian Mountains, is called “Tornado Alley” for good reason. Perhaps, instead of continually rebuilding residential communities there, planning officials should reserve these plains for farming….
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