The Democrats are soon coming to the day they will regret politicizing Katrina in hopes of destroying President George W. Bush. It's already apparent in the Associated Press, Obama looks to the Haiti earthquake as a resume builder, as the AP writes, this won't be Obama's Katrina. Judging by the news stories coming from Haiti, Obama might want to hold that thought.
As President Bush 43 comes out of retirement to become a temporary diplomat for Haitian relief, we quickly see the class he brings to the role. No politics--just a guy ready to help. It would be easy to get political based on the power plays towards the Bush administration from GITMO, to prosecuting key Bush administration officials, to Obama's relaxed appearance on terrorism, to the worsening mess in Haiti, which the AP used to invoke memories of Haiti.
"I'd say now is not the time to focus on politics," Bush told CBS's "Face the Nation. "You've got people who are ... children who've lost parents. People wondering where they're going to be able to drink water. There's a great sense of desperation. And so my attention is on trying to help people deal with the desperation."
Of course that was never the case with Katrina. It became hateful against Bush, and critics even accused Bush of racism and using the hurricane for genocide of black people.
There is a good nature to Bush having been down this road. He does need to realize who is in the White House and who has the media salivating for his success. If the AP put out the Katrina comparison, then he should call them on it other than commenting on Rush Limbaugh's comments about the efforts, which were once again taken out of context by CBS.
When the AP published their story, it was a game changer. At that point, we had the right to look at Obama's efforts compared to Katrina in my opinion. Here's the January 15, 2010 Associated Press article:
WASHINGTON (AP) - This is what President Barack Obama wants people to think about the U.S. reaction to the catastrophe in Haiti: "swift, coordinated and aggressive." He promised that stellar response in his first comments about the earthquake on Wednesday, then repeated it twice on Thursday.
In other words, this will not be Hurricane Katrina.
Obama is determined to show that the United States, even consumed with its own troubles, can get this right. And that he can, too.
The world is watching because of the expectations that come with being a rich, powerful democracy that is supposed to look out for its neighbors.
And because the stain of Katrina is not gone.
"This is one of those moments that calls out for American leadership," said Obama, who can add a humanitarian crisis to his first-year tests in office.
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