Republican leaders in Congress and some White House officials see opportunities in Hurricane Katrina to advance longstanding conservative goals like giving students vouchers to pay for private schools, paying churches to help with temporary housing and scaling back business regulation. ...

The Bush administration has already moved to relax a variety of regulations in areas damaged by the hurricane. Many of the changes are small, like letting people take bigger tax deductions for the miles they drive while doing charitable work. Another change, announced on Friday by Treasury Secretary John W. Snow, will give preference to investment groups from hurricane areas that are seeking tax credits for community development projects.

But other changes are more ideological and more controversial. On Thursday, Mr. Bush issued an order that exempts federal contractors working on disaster relief projects from a longstanding federal requirement that they pay workers "prevailing wages," which are usually pegged to union pay rates.

The exemption strikes at the heart of a requirement that labor unions and Democratic lawmakers have ferociously defended for years.

"There are a lot of opportunities to experiment," said Mr. Snow, who jointed Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao and Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez in a rapid trip to highlight the administration's hurricane-relief operations.

But beyond the immediate needs, Republican lawmakers and administration officials are contemplating tax cuts intended to draw companies and workers back to New Orleans, regulatory changes to speed the expansion of oil refineries and scores of smaller changes to improve the recovery.

Companies with ties to the Bush White House and the former head of FEMA are clinching some of the administration's first disaster relief and reconstruction contracts in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.

At least two major corporate clients of lobbyist Joe Allbaugh, President George W. Bush's former campaign manager and a former head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, have already been tapped to start recovery work along the battered Gulf Coast.

One is Shaw Group Inc. <SGR.N> and the other is Halliburton Co. <HAL.N> subsidiary Kellogg Brown and Root. Vice President Dick Cheney is a former head of Halliburton.

Bechtel National Inc., a unit of San Francisco-based Bechtel Corp., has also been selected by FEMA to provide short-term housing for people displaced by the hurricane. Bush named Bechtel's CEO to his Export Council and put the former CEO of Bechtel Energy in charge of the Overseas Private Investment Corporation.

How about their favorite subject, 9/11? After that disaster, the GOP controlled government offered relief via bank loans to those impacted by 9/11. Those silly folks in NYC probably thought that meant them, but loans to NY only made up 11% of the five billion dished out. Instead the money was handed out by banks who just happen to be large campaign donors and who have their tasty chunk of pork coming with the bankruptcy bill next month, to people across the country including the 9/11-needy country radio station KBFS in Belle Fourche, South Dakota and Little Dogs Resort & Salon in Utah.

We face two opposite prospects. The first is that Americans will finally grasp that what connects the catastrophes in New Orleans and Iraq is a witches' brew of self-delusion, deliberate deception, cronyism, and staggering incompetence on the part of the Bush administration. Republicans, meanwhile, will desert a president who is becoming a plain embarrassment even to his staunchest backers.

But there is a darker possibility. The Karl Rove team is gradually getting Republicans back ''on message." The message: There's no point in playing a ''blame game," as Scott McClellan said 15 times at Thursday's press briefing. The New Orleans disaster just proves the unreliability of government in general rather than this feckless president in particular. We should be looking forward to rebuilding -- with the private sector taking the lead.

If we aren't alert, Bush will not only wriggle out of political responsibility for diverting funds from New Orleans's flood defenses, eviscerating FEMA, and bungling the response, just as he evaded responsibility after Richard Clarke's testimony that the administration ignored warnings about Al Qaeda's plans for a 9/11 style-attack. Katrina could even be a political windfall, promoting the campaign to cripple government, permanently displacing some reliable Democratic voters from the swing state of Louisiana, causing the faithful to rally 'round their beleaguered president, and knocking even more unpleasant news off the front pages and network TV.

But as specific orders began arriving to the firefighters in Atlanta, a team of 50 Monday morning quickly was ushered onto a flight headed for Louisiana. The crew's first assignment: to stand beside President Bush as he tours devastated areas.

And here is the fruit of their labor: The publicity photo.

And only the hypercynical among you would dare to suggest that this photo will do its job—that the Mark Steyns and the Hugh Hewitts and the Jonah Goldbergs will dash to their keyboards and begin gushing about their bold, steely leader rolling up his sleeves (note the sleeve!) and getting to work.

I guess this is what Bush was talking about yesterday when he called himself a "problem solver." But one of these days he and the Rovians really ought to take a stab at trying to solve other people's problems.

I'm just surprised they didn't shove some boots and a helmet on Shrub and stick him behind the wheel of a fire engine. Maybe with a big banner on the side: "Lets Roll!"

Using experienced firefighters as PR flacks while fires burn in New Orleans is not a screw up. It was FEMA's plan.

On Monday, some firefighters stuck in the staging area at the Sheraton peeled off their FEMA-issued shirts and stuffed them in backpacks, saying they refuse to represent the federal agency.

Federal officials are unapologetic. 

"I would go back and ask the firefighter to revisit his commitment to FEMA, to firefighting and to the citizens of this country," said FEMA spokeswoman Mary Hudak.

The firefighters - or at least the fire chiefs who assigned them to come to Atlanta - knew what the assignment would be, Hudak said.

"The initial call to action very specifically says we're looking for two-person fire teams to do community relations," she said. "So if there is a breakdown [in communication], it was likely in their own departments." ...

...Louis H. Botta, a coordinating officer for FEMA, said sending out firefighters on community relations makes sense. They already have had background checks and meet the qualifications to be sworn as a federal employee. They have medical training that will prove invaluable as they come across hurricane victims in the field.

Do read the entire Salt Lake Tribune article, by Lisa Rosetta. Read about the search-and-rescue, parametics, and haz-mat certified experts had to sit through a sexual-harassment class (your punch line here). Read about how the firefighters have been warned not to talk to the press. And read about how cities are picking up the tab to fill the firefighters' vacancies while they work 30 days for the federal government and are now not available to respond to disasters anywhere.

Mo Dowd reports that in the days just following Hurricane Katrina, Dick the Dick had been shopping "for a $2.9 million waterfront estate in St. Michael's, a retreat in the Chesapeake Bay where Rummy has a weekend home." But now he's got a shot at owning a big chunk of the oil-rich Gulf Coast, and at bargain-basement prices!

Cross-posted to The American Street.

It orchestrated visits by cabinet members to the region, leading up to an extraordinary return visit by Mr. Bush planned for Monday, directed administration officials not to respond to attacks from Democrats on the relief efforts, and sought to move the blame for the slow response to Louisiana state officials, according to Republicans familiar with the White House plan.

The effort is being directed by Mr. Bush's chief political adviser, Karl Rove, and his communications director, Dan Bartlett. It began late last week after Congressional Republicans called White House officials to register alarm about what they saw as a feeble response by Mr. Bush to the hurricane, according to Republican Congressional aides.

The propaganda catapulted by Rove and Bartlett included:

• The lie that feds couldn't act because Louisiana Governor Blanco didn't declare a state of emergency (in fact, she did so on August 26).  
• The lie that the feds couldn't act because (per Michael Chertoff) "our constitutional system really places the primary authority in each state with the governor." Not so.

 Peter G. Gosselin and Alan C. Miller write in today's Los Angeles Times:

Under the law, Chertoff said, state and local officials must direct initial emergency operations. "The federal government comes in and supports those officials," he said.

Chertoff's remarks, which echoed earlier statements by President Bush, prompted withering rebukes both from former senior FEMA staffers and outside experts.

"They can't do that," former agency chief of staff Jane Bullock said of Bush administration efforts to shift responsibility away from Washington. "The moment the president declared a federal disaster, it became a federal responsibility…. The federal government took ownership over the response," she said. Bush declared a disaster in Louisiana and Mississippi when the storm hit a week ago.

"What's awe-inspiring here is how many federal officials didn't issue any orders," said Paul C. Light, an authority on government operations at New York University.

Louisiana officials pushed back hard against the White House yesterday, sharply criticizing President Bush for offering a tentative and insufficient response to the obliteration of New Orleans and then trying to shift the blame to the state and local governments.

Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) accused Bush of failing to fund efforts to fortify the levee protecting New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina hit, and of failing to send troops, supplies and other assistance quickly enough in Katrina's aftermath. "Would the president please stop taking photo-ops, and please come and see what I'm trying to show him?" Landrieu asked on ABC's "This Week." She threatened to "punch" Bush or anyone else who criticizes the response of the local sheriffs, one day after administration officials blamed state and local authorities for missteps in relief and rescue efforts.

Aaron Broussard, president of decimated Jefferson Parish in Louisiana, broke down in tears on NBC's "Meet the Press" as he chided officials. "Nobody's coming to get us," Broussard said, his head sagging. "The secretary has promised. Everybody's promised. They've had press conferences. I'm sick of the press conferences. For God's sake, shut up and send us somebody."

“STORM: Have you addressed the concerns of flooding in the New Orleans area, and particularly this possibility that it might become, as one expert put it, a toxic cesspool? A lot of pollution concerns.

Gov. BLANCO: Well, flooding, of course, is our main concern. That would–that would create an untenable situation in the city of New Orleans if the levees were to be breached. That would be our biggest problem. We would just deal with that situation. We will evaluate it as soon as this hurricane fury has blown over, and we’ll deal with what we have.

STORM: With the president, in advance of the storm hitting, declaring a state of emergency, how has that specifically helped your efforts?

Gov. BLANCO: Well, Hannah, it allowed FEMA to come in here early. We’ve set the stage for a lot of help for evacuation help, and the federal government is standing by. The president called. He was very supportive of our efforts. He was encouraging evacuation. He was very concerned. We appreciate his concern.

STORM: And what do you have available specifically, in terms of troops and supplies, as soon as this hurricane rolls through, to go in and assess and take care of the damage?

Gov. BLANCO: We’ve got National Guard members standing by, we’ve got airplanes ready to go in and do early assessments as soon as the back of the storm moves further inland. We’ll be knowing in a few hours what we’re dealing with. I know the low-lying areas are going to suffer the brunt of it–the early brunt of it, and we’ll do search and rescue, if necessary.”

1) The delay in federal aid in the form of food, water and meds for the displaced within NO, especially at the Superdome and Convention Center, in air drops or any other form, has been implausibly long, as the media, Ray Nagin, etc., have more or less screamed to anyone who'd listen.

The military was well-prepared beforehand -- they started planning as the storm went over Florida, and had 9 million MREs ready to deliver. But protocol requires they await orders from FEMA or the president (via Terre on DKos).

New Mexico offered its National Guard on Sunday, again, before the storm hit, and Louisiana accepted, but "paperwork needed to get the troops en route didn't come from Washington until late Thursday" (Yahoo via Atrios.)

FEMA director Mike Brown claimed that FEMA didn't know about the Convention Centre situation until Thursday (CNN) -- here we have an example of a).  This simply cannot be true; even for purely partisan operatives, duties include following the networks.

All through, the victims were promised supplies and transportation to safety -- c).  Likewise Ray Nagin was stalled by promises of help from FEMA/Homeland Security: "I keep hearing that it's coming. This is coming, that is coming, and my answer to that today is: B.S." (his kickbutt interview on WWL, quoted everywhere)

2) Before the hurricane hit, Gov. Kathleen Blanco requested Washington provide disaster relief aid, including military personnel and $5 million for evacuation.  No military personnel showed up until Sept. 2; as far as I can tell, the $5 million was not received in time to aid with the evacuation.  No reason given.  The governor now knows to make sure the media sees her requests as well as the president, demands his "personal involvement" viz her presser of yesterday.

3) Rescue operations were suspended by FEMA due to shots being taken at helicopter -- a) -- as many DKos commenters have pointed out, National Guard rescuers shouldn't be discouraged by this. There's some doubt it happened at all, as at the bottom of this ABC story.  In the vast majority of cases this was likely not to be a danger at all.

4) Offers of help were refused:

• Canadian rescue teams -- held up by Homeland Security (DKos diary)
  
• air-boat volunteers required by FEMA to pay for their own gasoline, couldn't afford to (DKos diary), turned down even if they could (South Florida Sun-Sentinel)
  
• Al Gore - airplanes -- refused by FEMA (CNN) because he was going to evacuate a private hospital, and FEMA mandate only allows aid to public hospitals
  
• 500 boats and 1,000 men from elsewhere in Louisiana -- diaried by pelican here
  
• Chicago mayor Richard Daley -- via espo111 on DKos, from Chicago Sun-Times: "Mayor of Chicago Richard Daley offered 36 firefighters and technical rescue teams, 8 emergency medical techs, search-and-rescue equipment, 100 police officers, 2 boats, a mobile clinic and 140 streets and sanitation workers with 29 trucks. All self-sufficient. And the FEMA response?  'Just send one truck.' "

That they accepted one truck rather than turning down all shows a clear intent to appear to be accepting the offer while in effect refusing it -- which is deceptive.

FEMA's refusal to pay for airboat gas came solely through DKos -- suggesting that FEMA isn't saying these things where the media will hear -- b).

More individual cases in this Help Offered-Rejected/Delayed diary by SarahLee.

5) Offers of desperately-needed equipment/supplies were also turned down by FEMA in Slidell, supposedly due to bureaucratic regulations -- a).  Slidell mayor Ben Morris (audio, transcript): "They have turned generators away from us. They´ve turned fuel away from us because they determine, or the driver determined, that it wasn´t the correct spot to put it. The generators ... oh, the site hadn´t been inspected yet. We´ve gotta bring an inspector to see where the thing is going.  ...We have heard that FEMA or some federal agencies are going around seizing equipment from our contractors..."

6) Private relief agencies (Red Cross, Salvation Army) are prevented from working in NO, by FEMA.  Reason given -- a) -- this would keep people from leaving the city.  The idea, apparently, was to make conditions so unbearable people would be forced to leave or face death.  But at the same time, no transportation was being provided them.  This came via Kossack SteveRose who writes that he was cagily asked by his source if he was a member of the media -- b). Red Cross website confirms they aren't allowed to go in.

7) The military is now disallowing people to leave the city on their own via the only way out, at the same time that no transportation is being provided (Shepard Smith and Geraldo Rivera -- Fox News). In these situations the military is directed by FEMA.

The concept that rescuers are not safe due to looters and snipers has been blown way out of proportion, with even Bush himself emphasizing it.  See this LA Times story about a military unit who didn't find anything like what they'd been led to expect.  The purpose here could be not only to discredit/blame the victims, but to serve as an excuse -- a) -- for calling off aid/rescue work, as above.

Now, the central source: note how all of these actions can be traced back to FEMA/Homeland Security, or the President himself (as CoC) in Washington.