An excerpt from Schieffer's closing statement from today's Face the Nation:
"Since 9/11, Washington has spent years and untold billions reorganizing the government to
deal with crises brought on by possible terrorist attacks. If this is the result, we had better start over."
Start over, how? By impeaching Bush and getting a new president? Sounds good to me!
Full text from today's program below wherein he rips a whole bunch of Bushies new ones...
SCHIEFFER: Finally, a personal thought. We have come through what may have been one
of the worst weeks in America's history, a week in which government at every level failed the
people it was created to serve. There is no purpose for government except to improve the lives
of its citizens. Yet as scenes of horror that seemed to be coming from some Third World
country flashed before us, official Washington was like a dog watching television. It saw the
lights and images, but did not seem to comprehend their meaning or see any link to reality.
As the floodwaters rose, local officials in New Orleans ordered the city evacuated. They might
as well have told their citizens to fly to the moon. How do you evacuate when you don't have a
car? No hint of intelligent design in any of this. This was just survival of the richest.
By midweek a parade of Washington officials rushed before the cameras to urge patience. What
good is patience to a mother who can't find food and water for a dehydrated child? Washington
was coming out of an August vacation stupor and seemed unable to refocus on business or
even think straight. Why else would Speaker of the House Dennis Hastert question aloud
whether New Orleans should even be rebuilt? And when he was unable to get to Washington
in time to vote on emergency aid funds, Hastert had an excuse only Washington could
understand: He had to attend a fund-raiser back home.
Since 9/11, Washington has spent years and untold billions reorganizing the government to
deal with crises brought on by possible terrorist attacks. If this is the result, we had better start over.
For those who wish to make donations to the relief effort, you can call the American Red Cross
at 1 (800) HELP NOW, which is 1 (800) 435-7669. CBS News will have continuing coverage
of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.