Ryan sends a scathing text this morning about the latest news from the oil spill clean up in LA. So, to make sure I have all my facts in order, I go ahead and do as much reading as I can on the topic. Let me just say that when I can only find 19 real, legitimate articles on the topic, I have to give Ryan some big old kudos for finding this headline... this is not front-line stuff yet, but it will be by tomorrow morning.
Anyway, Jindal wants the Feds to okay the construction of 5 to 7 miles of sand berms that would act as barriers against the oil slick as it approached the most fragile of the Louisiana interior wetlands. The Coast Guard has tentatively approved the plan, but needs a Federal "ok" to move any further, and the Army Corps of Engineers won't do anything without White House approval.
If the Federal approval won't come fast enough, Jindal wants to do it himself (meaning he will authorize it under his authority as the CIC of the State of LA), but there are snags involved in this course of action, too.
Without Federal approval, there is no Federal funding. Without the funding, LA can't build the berms, as they do not have the equipment at their disposal in LA... they would need outside contractors to provide the specialized sand and barges to begin the project. Furthermore, without the Fed's "ok", there is no guaranty that BP will reimburse the State for costs incurred as part of the general clean-up (which is all that BP is currently liable for... clean up costs, not prevention costs).
Jindal is right for demanding that the Fed get "out of his way" so he and the State can coordinate things as they see best fit, but in failing to get Federal approval, he could run up some big bills for Louisiana, and that is a bit antithetical to the GOP mantra. I think it is unfortunate in the extreme that the White House is playing the "who's in charge?" game with Jindal, and costing the people of LA a greater portion of their livelihood and ecology in the process.
On a side note: Isn't this a good example of HOW the Fed could effect change and bring some relief to an area hit by natural disaster without expanding the interventionist nature of government that Ryan so hates? Have the Feds provide the funding and means for local or regional recovery/relief/prevention, without having the Feds assume TOTAL control of the effort over and above the State level, seems like a good middle-ground for how the Feds can provide assistance in times like this. After all, we are talking about 1,700 miles of fishing grounds where the annual revenue for shrimp, oyster, crabs and clams (all effected by the spill) tops more than $40 billion and effects FIVE US States' regional economies. I'd say that is a "national concern" to say the least...
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