Joe Biden's Dawdling in Ordering Federal Troops for Disaster Relief Is Incompetent, Malicious, or Both
By streiff | 6:00 AM on October 03, 2024
It has been nearly a week since Hurricane Helene hit western North Carolina, and Joe Biden has finally announced, on behalf of whoever is running the country, that he has authorized 1,000 federal troops from Fort Bragg (I will never call it anything else) North Carolina, to assist in disaster relief operations a mere 250 miles away.
Today, the President is announcing he has directed the Department of Defense to deploy up to 1,000 active-duty soldiers to support response efforts. These soldiers are part of an Infantry Battalion Task Force, based out of Fort Liberty, North Carolina, which includes a Forward Support Company with the necessary support structure (fuel, water, mechanics, etc.) to conduct operations.These 1,000 troops will constitute the overwhelming majority of the federal military disaster response in Florida, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia.
According to the Department of Defense, the federal military involvement in this five-state catastrophe is minimal:
A joint enabling team (I won't make jokes; I'm sure what they do is vital).
A liaison to the federal search and rescue coordination group in Orlando, Florida. (I'm not sure if this is a liaison team or a liaison officer.)
A "mission assignment support team" was created to embed with the National Response Coordination Center in Washington, D.C.
The US Army Corps of Engineers is providing emergency power planning and response teams to Georgia, dam, levee, and bridge inspection to Tennessee and Kentucky, and temporary power to North Carolina. (The "temporary power to North Carolina" item apparently involves consulting with utilities on restoring power.)
A command and control team for "high water vehicles and air operations support for rotary wing aircraft" was created at Fort Bragg.
Four helicopters with pararescue teams are at McGhee Tyson Airport in Knoxville, Tennessee.
On Monday, eight Army helicopters and ten Navy helicopters were available at Fort Bragg.
Thirty high-water vehicles are at Fort Campbell, Kentucky, for reasons that are unclear.The critical resources needed in the hardest hit areas of Western North Carolina are helicopters for getting stranded people out of danger and bringing supplies to areas cut off by flooding. As of Wednesday afternoon, the only military aircraft available are 11 from Florida, two from South Carolina, seven from Tennessee, and one from Virginia. Some of those may be in use in North Carolina as both Florida and South Carolina have sent National Guard contingents to North Carolina.
more
https://redstate.com/streiff/2024/10/03/joe-bidens-dawdling-ordering-federal-troops-for-disaster-relief-is-incompetent-malicious-or-both-n2180085
