Who would you rather have deal with disaster relief after something as devastating as Hurricane Sandy? The Federal Government? Or for-profit private industry? Government obviously has important roles to play in society, despite what one side will have you believe in this election.
Sandy has certainly proven to be the superstorm it was labeled, with massive flooding and damage as it slammed ashore in New Jersey last night. There’s certainly plenty of coverage on Sandy in the media, and I won’t focus on the storm or storm damage itself. I will comment though on a peripheral effect of Sandy…helping to clarify what this election is all about.
The New York Times today has a very nice editorial on the role of government in times like this. As they state a “bit storm requires big government”. Response to a disaster is of course one of many important roles the government plays. However, to Romney and Republicans, ANY Federal government task, outside of making sure we have 10 times as many weapons as the next guy, is better relegated to states, or better yet, the private sector. Romney was asked about the role of FEMA in a Republican debate late last year, and stated that it was “immoral” to provide disaster relief, given the effects on the debt. He goes on to say that FEMA tasks should be given to states themselves, or better yet, to private industry.
Mr. Romney, do you think the victims of Katrina thought it was “immoral” for the government to provide assistance in the face of a horrible disaster? They probably thought Bush’s handling of the disaster was “immoral”, especially given how the Bush administration weakened FEMA during his administration. But I guarantee you that victims of a national disaster such as Katrina or Sandy would NOT feel more comfortable having states handle such situations. As much of a Obama basher as New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is, ask him if he thinks his state can handle this situation on their own.
An even WORSE idea is Romney’s suggestion that such disaster relief be placed in the hands of private industry. JUST what is needed in times of natural disaster…a capitalistic approach, and an opportunity to make a buck off of other people’s misery.
I’m not even surprised any more at how incredibly short people’s memories are, or how they understand basic political, economic, and social events in this country. The Bush administration did everything they could to lessen government regulation, to let capitalism run unfettered by government restraint…and helped to lead us straight into the worst economic disaster since the Great Depression. Four short years later, when a recovery has taken hold, when housing prices are rising, when unemployment is falling…and there’s a significant chance that Americans will be voting in another Republican administration who wants to cut government regulation, and privatize a government function as critical as FEMA and disaster response.
I wish those in the Northeast all the best as they try to recover from this storm. It certainly is going to make life a lot harder for a lot of folks over the next several weeks and months. But as an underfunded FEMA attempts to handle one of the largest natural disasters to hit the U.S., I hope that one tiny silver lining to the event is that it clarifies for many just what is on the line in this election.
