Last night I was talking with someone who said it was the local NO government’s fault and not the federal government’s fault for the delay. I disagreed with her, but here is a post (via Bitch PhD) at Kos that details that the governor of LA asked for aid prior to the storm even hitting. The post also details aid that has been refused and possible motives for the fed’s screw-ups.
I don’t know that I agree with the motives listed at Kos. While I think W and friends like people like themselves (rich for the corporate interests), I don’t know that I would say that they don’t like Black people. I think they just like people like themselves more.
I think it comes down to money, power, votes, and spin.
Money
Just as with car recalls–corporations decide whether or not it’s more or less expensive to fix it ahead of time or fix it only when they absolutely have to do so.
The federal government withheld funds to LA to improve the levies. What I think holds up is that LA is a democratic state. I can see the president and friends saying, ‘well, if we have to trim the budget somewhere, let’s start trimming from those states, peoples, and programs that do not support us.’
Mississippi and Alabama got the funds and help they needed and they’re Republican states.
Power
If the poor neighborhoods are not rebuilt because of floods, then who profits? Corporate interests who can rebuild it for corporate rather than community benefits. The powerless are now residents of other states. Will they have the money to move back to LA on their own again when it is time to rebuild? I really doubt that the federal government is going to pay to bus people back into LA.
If they keep people in a state of fear, then they win.
If they keep people in fear, then they implicitly instill that people need a strict father-figure in the presidency (read: Republican) to protect people from anything that can go wrong. If people are fearful, then they’re more likely to do as they’re told and give away their rights and privacy to the government so they can protect us.
Votes
If they disperse people from LA to TX, they disperse likely Democratic votes to communities in Texas where the strong Republic votes can easily override them in the next election.
Spin
If W can ride in and save the day, then why not try and arrange it so that he gets as many photo ops as possible? Think back to that “mission accomplished” photo-op.
Update: Michael Bérubé has the photo and the perfection caption in a few days will be: Operation Cover Our Asses is Complete.
K. in Bitch PhD’s comments points out, “When the media started pointing out the lack of rescue efforts, he realized it was politically important to do something about it.”

Money, power, votes, and spin — Keep people in fear and you keep more control of it all.
—–