After 911, many people became absorbed with the notion that America was indeed fortunate George W. Bush was selected president instead of wonkish, popular vote winner Al Gore.
The surrealistic horror of the attacks helped make it easy to overlook Bush's underlying constellation of deep personal flaws, to ignore the increasingly evident mendacity and discount his unabashedly cavalier attitude about all things intellectual.
In the aftermath of the attacks, Bush's non-cognitive, hyper-macho, pseudo-cowboy persona seemed in precise alignment with the inherent twin yearnings for naked retribution and military vindication --- emotion-fed desires that clouded the nation's collective judgment.
Nearly six years later, look where that has gotten America.
Now we have Rudy Giuliani, crowned "America's Mayor" due, oddly enough, to his chaotic, disjointed and (to me, at least) scatterbrained, yet highly visible real-time trek through a New York City under attack. Giuliani's ubiquity that day, of course, was in obvious contrast to Bush's "where's Waldo?" vanishing act that went on for hours into the crisis.
While many picture Rudy's 911 travails as theatrically heroic, others believe it revealed Giuliani, whom TIME magazine named "Person of the Year" in 2001, to be at least as fraudulent and empty a candidate for president as Bush ever was. While both views may be open for debate, the fortuitous connection between 911 and the resurrection (and in Bush's case, eventual destruction) of the two men's political careers, is wholly inarguable.
Nevertheless, despite Giuliani's still-present 911 after-glow, the former Mayor of New York City and U.S. Attorney still has dirty linen in his political closet with which to contend. Regardless of the mythic persona that developed around Rudy in 911's aftermath --- which is the obvious selling point of his candidacy and linchpin to his future in politics --- questions persist about his competency or lack thereof, when it comes to managing whether in and out of a crisis. As the campaign heats up, Rudy will be forced to confront these questions and should be required to provide reasonable answers. Some of the questions that need answers include:
•Why did Rudy, prior to 911, fail to comprehend that New York City was a prime target for terrorist attack and therefore consider establishing a counter terrorism strategy for his city?
In the book, Grand Illusion: The Untold Story of Rudy Giuliani and 911, authors Wayne Barrett and Dan Collins point out that Giuliani hadn't bothered to even discuss terror threats facing New York -- much less lay out any sort of counter terrorism blueprint with key officials -- until after the 911 attacks. According to the writers, despite the fact that the World Trade Center had been previously attacked, the Giuliani administration had not coordinated a single inter-departmental emergency drill at the Towers nor had a system of command and control policies in place for evacuating fires in high-rise buildings.
•Why did Rudy insist that the city's Office of Emergency Management (OEM) be housed in of all places, the previously attacked World Trade Center?
Some might consider this as perhaps the most alarming example of insouciance on the part of Giuliani regarding potential terror threats facing his city. It is appallingly mind-boggling that someone of Giuliani's law enforcement background would consider situating the OEM – which Rudy grandiloquently labeled, "The Bunker" – on the 23rd floor of Number 7 World Trade Center, which, even prior to the 1993 attack, was widely considered one of the world's most likely terror targets.
•Why did Rudy, on the day of the attacks, order fire and police department command posts set up at separate locations?
Giuliani's unfathomable ignorance of a cardinal rule of emergency response tactics – unified first responder command posts, also raises questions about his ability to manage. Once the attack rendered the OEM bunker in the WTC useless, Giuliani, in a decision widely regarded as having caused the communication breakdown between the two emergency response departments, decided to establish separate police and fire department command posts. The 911 Commission Report points out that communication lapses were the major cause of scores of unnecessary casualties, particularly among firefighters who, due to the communication breakdowns, were unaware that an evacuation order had been issued. The separation of the two crucial response operations also explains why so often, televised images of the Giuliani that day, showed him walking the streets along with then-Police Commissioner Bernard Kerik. The Mayor, literally, was walking from command post to command post – during the height of the crisis. Perhaps not the best way to manage during such a time.
•Did financial considerations trump health concerns thus lead you to downplay the toxicitylevel of the air around Lower Manhattan and prematurely reopen the Financial District?
Tons of pulverized concrete, asbestos, glass, lead, mercury, even human remains created air in Lower Manhattan that was, according to University of California Professor Thomas Cahill, an expert on air pollution, "wildly toxic" for months. Yet, less than a week later -- September 17-- with Ground Zero still smoldering, Rudy reopened Wall Street and the rest of the Financial District. While hindsight is indeed, 20-20, an ounce of prevention may have gone a long way. I'd be remiss were I not to point out, however, the role that a heavily sanitized air quality report issued by then-Environmental Protection Agency head Christine Todd Whitman (along with her own statements attesting to air quality safety) played in Rudy's decision. Part of that EPA report however, does hand off key decision making discretion to "New York City officials." Be that as it may, the adverse effect on the health of workers and others in and around Ground Zero, resulting in part, from Rudy's decision to quickly reopen the Financial District, clearly reveals the imprudence of such a hasty move. Today, as a result of all the illnesses and deaths from respiratory ailments clearly linked to that environment, scores of lawsuits have been filed against the City of New York.
Rudy, is no more than an opportunist rising from the face of the world trade center disaster. New yorkers might like this guy, but the rest of this country will have trouble digesting him. I did like his stand up and be tough attitude to protect his people after the attack on 9/11. Being a mayor of New York somehow suits him, but to be a president of this country needs far more than rallying angered people in my best of judgment. Bush and company have ran there whole war agenda on this type of a strategy. Rudy and senator Hillary Clinton, have from time to time been to much in support of Bush our royal pain in the ass and his policy for me to even consider them any where near moral or responsible to this nation, to ever lead it as a president.
by
Fred F (1 articles, 1 quicklinks, 4 diaries, 361 comments)
on Thursday, March 1, 2007 at 10:00:10 PM
I am a NYer. Rudy did something that hampered rescue efforts! He should have requested that the president "not visit the scene!" While the president was making his photo op, they had the area sealed off. Digging had stopped. To someone under the rubble, perhaps gasping for air, each second brings them closer to death. The photo op just wasn't that important. Rudi had to have known this. He had closed firehouses to add a few hundred cops, causing a rift between the two agencies. As for stance on Gay unions or abortion, I could really care less - both of those issues ought to really be handled by the States - NOT the Federal government. He is not of leadership caliber. His handling of those he claims to represent most (first reponders) shows this as well with the air toxic thing too. I had found him "tolerable" as mayor at best. I suppose if it comes down to him or McAin.... he would get my nod.
by
Brad (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 36 comments)
on Friday, March 2, 2007 at 8:37:21 PM
3 comments
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