FEMA Administrator Craig Fugate, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, and FEMA Deputy Administrator Rich Serino
With this week's deadly storm as a backdrop, there's been a fair amount of interest in Mitt Romney's plans for FEMA's future. Just last year, the Republican said he intends to effectively close FEMA's doors, turning over authority for emergency response to states and the private sector.
At a public event on Tuesday, Romney was asked 11 times by reporters whether he'd keep FEMA intact if elected president, and 11 times, the candidate ignored the question. It took a while, but yesterday, his campaign issued a written statement with the Republican's position.
"I believe that FEMA plays a key role in working with states and localities to prepare for and respond to natural disasters," Romney said in a statement supplied by his campaign Wednesday. "As president, I will ensure FEMA has the funding it needs to fulfill its mission, while directing maximum resources to the first responders who work tirelessly to help those in need, because states and localities are in the best position to get aid to the individuals and communities affected by natural disasters."
At a minimum, this is preferable to the candidate blowing off the question altogether. But the written statement from aides -- why Romney wouldn't say this out loud is unclear -- leaves key questions unanswered.
For example, why is it that Romney now believes FEMA should get "the funding it needs," but last year, he said "we cannot afford" to fully fund the agency? Other than the calendar, what's changed?
What's more, the budget plan Romney endorsed would mean at least a 34% cut to FEMA's budget. Has the Republican candidate changed his mind about this, too, or does he stand by his previous commitment?
And let's also not forget that GOP policymakers over the last two years have said they only intend to fund disaster relief if they can cut a comparable amount of spending elsewhere in the budget. Would a Romney/Ryan administration operate with this principle in mind?
The election is five days away. The answers to these questions matter.
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It absolutely terrifies me that this man can become President. With his lack of backbone- flip flopping all over, it gives a perception of weakness to the rest of the world. And that includes the terrorist. And that scares me. For me, it is the bigger picture.
He has no idea as to the amount of devastation that has taken place- to compare it to cleaning a football field is an insult, FEMA isn't just another federal program it is the federal humanitarian program and it represents that part of our constitution that says, "promoting the general welfare".
If the states could handle their crisis then why the call by Chris Christie to POTUS. And fellow governors reaching out. We are not isolated states - we are the united states.
I'm absolutely convinced that Romney intends to fully fund FEMA so as to ensure it can fulfill its mission..... my only question is what does he intend to do to the mission of FEMA?
The Rombot has been reprogrammed........again! Where is the off switch??
"Just last year, the Republican said he intends to effectively close FEMA's doors"
"What's more, the budget plan Romney endorsed would mean at least a 34% cut to FEMA's budget."
Huh??????
Scare tacticts....do you serious think that FEMA, PBS and Planned Parenthood are going to disappear? If you do, then I have a house to sell you for full price in Florida.
Most PBS stations are revenue neutral and don't take taxpayer dollars so PBS would not completely disappear, no. But it would disappear in the regions where it is not able to get private funding (those areas, for the record, are the only ones receiving federal support). The same is true of Planned Parenthood.
FEMA, on the other hand, isn't a privately donated to organization. Why you would even lump FEMA into the same category is in and of itself specious. FEMA is a federal agency that helps manage, coordinate, and fund relief efforts after a major disaster. If funding to FEMA is cut dramatically it is going to have an effect on the agency's ability to meet that requirement. Now if you're OK with that dramatic effect then OK. But don't try to pretend like these agencies are spending 3x more than what they have to, to do the same job. You have no evidence for that assertion other than your inane belief that the federal government must- just because it's government- be wasting money and therefore FEMA must be wasting at least that much. It just isn't true.
Know one honestly knows what Romney will do if elected President; he's changed his mind so many times to suit the audience he's in front of. My guess would be he will walk in lock step with what ever the Tea Baggers want from him...he'll want a second term and to deny his base would be to deny another term. What our country will become under Romney will be nothing more then a land of greedy corporations a drones to work for them. It will become a country unrecognizable; a country deplored by the world in general. Romney and the GOP will destroy democracy. If he wins I predict a massive move to Canada.
Romney even said giving federal relief aid was "immoral." Strange idea of morality.
In the novel Inferno I believe the inscription over the gatesof hell read as thus: "Abandon all hope ye who enters here" I have a sinking feeling that if Romney is elected that will become the motto for our nation and all it's inhabitants, I pray that thePOTUS is re-elected!!!!!
Romney's statement is weak on style, devoid of substance.
I too, am frightened about our future if this charlatan is elected, but unlike others on this discussion, I am not puzzled about why so many people are supporting him. The Republican leadership and the evangelicals have been clear over the past two years that they don't like Romney, but they are still planning to vote for him. Why? Because they are not voting FOR Romney, they are voting AGAINST Obama. And given all that Obama has accomplished in his four year term (some say he has accomplished more than any president in the past 50 years) the only reason for voting against Obama is the politics of fear that has been trumpeted long and loud by the leading voices of the Republican party (Limbaugh, Rove, Trump, Cheney, Beck, Fox News, O'Reilly, Hannity, Coulter and the list goes on). And what is that fear based on? Golly, gee as a white guy, I can't imagine what most voters would be afraid of. I hate to say it, but an undercurrent of racism has been at work in trying to discredit, undermine, and sabotage this president since the day he took office. Some has been extremely subtle, but some has been so blatant as to make me scratch my head and ask why nobody is saying anything about this. This president has been treated with less respect than any president in my lifetime (66 years). The Obama campaign has avoided playing the "race card" for good reason - it can only hurt them. And I'm sure that most Americans (as usual) will claim that they are not racist and that the Presidents skin color has nothing to do with their position even as we reflect on the recent poll which indicated that a majority of our society holds racist views. Reminds me of the poll where 80% of us believe we are above average. I only hope and pray that enough people vote for Obama next Tuesday to keep Romney out of the White House. I personally believe that Barack Obama if given another four years could go down in history as one of the greatest presidents this country has ever had.
Is there a private company anywhere in the world that would take over FEMA? There is no profit in it. How in the world would a private company make any money from disaster relief? The private utilities and insurance companies stand to lose billions, billions their rate payers and policy holders will have to come up with somehow.
Romney's campaign must think that FEMA actually stands for Flip-flop Emerges from Mitt Again
I didn't have time to read through all of the posts, so I apologize if I'm repeating anything already stated. As I read his statement, he says only he "will ensure FEMA has the funding it needs to fulfill its mission," he doesn't say how. Also, how can localities and states deal with emergencies when they're literally under water? Clearly, this man has never been in a crisis. With respect to privatizing any of these programs, doesn't that mean foreign investors could take control? America would be sold out from under us through privatization of public programs. Scary!
Well it's obvious. He couldn't answer the question because his campaign hadn't yet told him what the answer was yet. Simple!
@ bflynch...Just as they have made health insurance and car insurance profitable, insurance companies will also make a privatized FEMA very profitable.
romney say so many different things,,one day he made a statement,,the day after he says the opposite,,so i hope mr obama wins ,the problem for me are the voting machines ,controlled by the rich republicans,,romney's son,,and if they cheat and romney wins(please no no no) he will do what ever he wants,,because they can show the tape of what he said,and say i told you before,,,because i have proof i told you,,like he will cut fema ,planned parenthood,,medicare etc,, and even if he said the opposite the day after,,all of his statements void anything he says as he goes along,,all smoke screen ,,,so he will do nothing for the poors and middle class,and all for the rich,,,,it is so obvious what he is doing,,,once for,,once against,,later he can say i told you all of that,,and not admit he denied the day after when ever he is caught lying,,it is scary,,,please voters,,listen and listen again,,,over and over,,,you can not miss romney lies,,he said he will get rid of fema,,loud and clear ,but does not answer question now when asked directly and could answer with the truth,, 11 times but no,,he let his staff lie for him,,than he will say ,he told us he will get rid of fema,,we all saw with mr obama,how fast he was taking care of 100% of peoples,,will voters remember or just forget like it seems they forgot about the bush destruction of this country,,,romney is evil,,,i know some republicans and they are not logical,,romney is like bush -cheney,,,if romney wins,,it will be romney-cheney-ryan,,3 fanatics with no compassion,,we will have to buy more protection from disaster like sandy,,,from private sector and i am not sure it will help,,it takes months for insurance companies to handle sample claims,,with fema mr obama was there right away,,he kept in touch with state official,,will the private companies do that,,i do not things so,,nobody will get help for weeks ,maybe months,,romney is wrong ,,the country needs fema in order to get help fast,not private sector,,it is ridiculous
Republicans answer to managing public budgets is to privatize nearly everything. Until of course, they are asked how privatization would make a current situation better. If they wanted to make an argument for FEMA privatization after Katrina, they would have some traction. But there are some things that are too big and too important to privatize and leave to the private sector. Specifically, health, welfare and protection of the public. If you want better government run programs, all you need are leaders that can get the job done. When FEMA was run under Bush, it was a disaster. Obama promised to revamp and reorganize FEMA, using the suggestions of governors (both GOP and Dem) and local emergency management directors around the country. And guess what? The new FEMA works. Government works when the two parties work together and take the politics out of government agencies. I mean Bush put Brown in charge of FEMA, a man with NO emergency management experience. He treated FEMA as just a patronage agency. Privatization would be the same. Private companies would be awarded contracts based on patronage. The only people that usually benefit from privatization are the companies that are awarded the contracts.
Not to forget...after the FEMA disaster in handling Katrina (I actually don't know what was more disastrous, the natural disaster itself or the handling of the FEMA at that point), Michael Brown was actually hired to be the VP of Disaster Recovery Practice at Cold Creek Solutions. So yes, privatizing FEMA can actually mean rehiring Brown or people like him and paying them much more to handle future disaster in this country.
Kind of give you a warm and fuzzy feeling of comfort, don't you think? ;)
We know he's going to flip-flop on any stance - with that in mind, I've created a new potential logo for Mitt - it looks good right-side up or flipped:
http://i489.photobucket.com/albums/rr252/Techbob13/MittFlipp320.gif
Even if you're a complete die hard right winger, how could you possibly vote for this guy?!?! You don't know one day to the next what the F he stands behind.
Parse him well. When he says "the funding it needs to fulfill its mission", he's redefining the mission to ONLY be the coordinator of the state/local first responders... and for that mission, it needs a lot less budget.
There is no hope for the tea party republicans. They accept Romney/Ryan lies because they really seem to think that their lives will be better. The lies do not seem to matter in the least, which I find astounding. If given irrefutable facts, they will change the subject. I guess if you worship Fox News, Limbaugh, Michelle Bachman and their ilk that you are going to be sorely disappointed on November 7th when you wake up and President Obama is still president.
Call me cynical, but they didn't say just how much they thought FEMA 'needs'. we have the impression that he means whatever amount they ask for, but he could as well say that a 34% reduction from current funding levels is exactly how much FEMA needs.
The Romney camp is probably not so different from many campaigns, except in the extent to which they let themselves lie. They famously said they wouldn't be slaves to fact-checkers, so it's not hard to imagine them sitting around dreaming up the next whooper.
It's the same with the FEMA statement. The question is why voters would fall for it. I think I know why.
It's hilarious that when Romney is asked about his desire to privatize FEMA, all he can do is "shuck and jive" his way out of answering the question. He's ALWAYS been a serial flipper, even his own party knows that. There is a fantastic video on youtube that shows just how his fellow GOPers REALLY feel about his inability to stay with one ideology. youtu.be/av3q7-a-ayc
Romney said “There are 47 percent of the people who will vote for the president no matter what. All right, there are 47 percent who are with him, who are dependent upon government, who believe that they are victims, who believe the government has a responsibility to care for them, who believe that they are entitled to health care, to food, to housing, to you-name-it. That's an entitlement. The government should give it to them. And they will vote for this president no matter what. And I mean the president starts off with 48, 49...he starts off with a huge number. These are people who pay no income tax. Forty-seven percent of Americans pay no income tax. So our message of low taxes doesn't connect. So he'll be out there talking about tax cuts for the rich. ... [M]y job is is not to worry about those people.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitt_Romney_presidential_campaign,_2012
[Notice how this reconciles with his stated goal of cutting the funding for FEMA.]
--- and then he said "It's not elegantly stated let me put it that way I'm speaking off the cuff in response to a question and I'm sure I can state it more clearly in a more effective way than I did in a setting like that and so I'm sure I’ll point that out as time goes on.”
http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2012/09/obama-campaign-responds-mojos-romney-scoop-shocking
[Notice how he does not speak to the press after the Hurricane Sandy disaster]