From Deseret News archives:
Hurricane may tarnish Bush image
"Frankly, the job is so monstrous down there, there's a possibility that even if he performs better than anyone can realistically expect, it could still have a negative impact," said Kirk Jowers, director of the University of Utah's Hinckley Institute of Politics.
Maybe some kind of defining moment the Louisiana equivalent of Bush at the bullhorn after Sept. 11 would help, he says.
Nationally, both Democrats and Republicans have taken shots at the president's handling of the crisis as corpses floated through the streets and thousands of New Orleanians waited helplessly for aid.
Republican Gov. Mitt Romney of Massachusetts called the government's response "an embarrassment." Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, a Republican, asked, "If we can't respond faster than this to an event we saw coming across the Gulf for days, then why do we think we're prepared to respond to a nuclear or biological attack?"
Even the president himself voiced dissatisfaction Friday. "I'm satisfied with the response; I'm not satisfied with all of the results," he said after touring Biloxi, Miss.
Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is black, disagrees: "That Americans would somehow in a color-affected way decide who to help and who not to help, I don't believe it. Americans are a very generous people."
In Utah, Joe Cannon, the head of the state Republican Party, dismisses blanket criticism of the president.
"The Democrats blame George Bush for every evil thing going on in the universe," Cannon said. "I think the weather is a bit of a stretch."
Cities and states have a responsibility, he added. "The federal government cannot fix every problem in the world."
Wayne Holland, chairman of the Utah Democratic Party, says his office has been receiving calls from Utahns around the state who are asking, "Why isn't the president doing what he's supposed to be doing" as commander-in-chief?
"It's been a lapse in response," Holland argued. "It hasn't looked like a priority."
Comments
- Clinton class sweet on candy 5:06 p.m.
- Alta rejects canyon subdivision 3:33 p.m.
- Adult sports leagues offered 3:19 p.m.
- Oil prices spike 3:06 p.m.
- Stocks turn higher 3:03 p.m.
- Nature's Way leaving Utah County 3:02 p.m.
- Notre Dame fires Weis 2:52 p.m.
- Daughter: Mitchell fed me my pet 2:51 p.m.
- Mansion tours begin Tuesday 2:48 p.m.
- Chaffetz: Leave Afghanistan 2:37 p.m.
- Hall mouths off about hate of Utah
893 - Cougars beat Utes in overtime
481 - Max Hall issues apology
360 - Hall's pain reflects self-betrayal
278 - Hall reprimanded by MWC
275 - Utes won't respond to Hall
184 - BYU is champion of the state
140 - Man trapped in Nutty Putty cave dies
121 - Cave to be sealed with body inside
118 - Rivalry Week is highly profane
91
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