It is now becoming apparent that the WH [White House] has consistently failed to appreciate the probable destruction of the Gulf Coast water related and energy related economy by the BP oil spill. Why? First, almost total reliance on information produced by BP for the first 5 weeks of the event! Second, the failure of the DOJ {Department of Justice}to file protective actions against BP concerning its reporting to the federal government and its data! Third, corruption of the federal reporting system by BP. Fourth, the clear lack of incident command caused by the continued reliance on HSPD-5 as the oil spill crisis command and control and response charter. Five, Congressional lack of understanding of how 40 CFR Part 300 mandates how the federal government responds in oil spills, and how substantially underfunded the Coast Guard (within DHS) and EPA are for this event.
What could be done? Authority to mobilize existing federal resources and assets could be done under the authority of the Defense Production Act of 1950, most recently extended for an addition 5 years last fall by legislation introduced on Senate floor by Senator Dodd, now soon to be ending his Senate career.
Bottom line, is that the BP oil spill is now likely to be the largest manmade contamination of a body of water on the surface of the earth in World History.
Folks, this is the big one, at least for the 21st century so far and will make 9/11/01 and Katrina look like child play. I am now willing to predict that while political fall out at the federal level was perhaps minimal from those two events, the BP oil spill will soon be recognized as requiring a massive assertion of national will if the Gulf States are to survive as political and economic parts of the federal system.
It would be interesting to know if the President of Mexico and President Obama discussed the spill at any length or any regard during the President of Mexico's recent visit. This should have topped immigration and drug enforcement but my guess did not.
Memorial Day will be one calibration point for this event but certainly by Labor Day and certainly by the 2010 Congressional elections this fall the BP event will cause revolutionary change in the Congress, IMO [In My Opinion]!
What do I mean by revolutionary change? The oil industries loyalists funded by big oil will start to be pariahs in the Congress and driven out. They have essentially controlled energy policy and transportation policy for over a century and now that is coming to a disasterous and complicated end. And as always could be wrong but don't think so as of this time.
