October 29, 2012 by David K. Sutton
Cut FEMA? Send It Back To The States? Privatize It?
During a Republican primary debate, Mitt Romney said this about FEMA (Federal Emergency Management Agency):
Every time you have an occasion to take something from the federal government and send it back to the states, that’s the right direction. And if you can go even further and send it back to the private sector, that’s even better. – Mitt Romney
MSNBC’s Martin Bashir said this in response to Romney’s above statement:
To which one might ask: Even better for whom Mr. Romney? – Martin Bashir
Romney’s rhetoric played well for a conservative crowd when there was no disasters or extreme weather events. But how well does it play now with tens of millions of people affected by Hurricane Sandy?
Corporations do no always do a better job than government no matter what a conservative wants to tell you. Public services, particularly emergency management services should not only stay public, they are best coordinated by the federal government. There is no efficiency in creating 50 standards when one will suffice and there is no reason executives and CEOs need to make a profit from pseudo public services.
