I was all prepared to give President Obama a pass on the oil spill and cleanup. I'd like to stress, the spill and the cleanup, not the Moronatorium. President Obama was no more responsible for the spill and the cleanup, I thought, than anyone else. Well, at least I was right about the spill. It appears now that the federal government has been ridiculously incompetent on the cleanup end of this disaster.
First, the breaking story of the day is that international help has been refused by the administration, adding weeks if not months to the cleacnup process.
Second, the reason for the denial of help? The Jones Act. The Jones Act denies the use of any foreign instrument in intercoastal transport. Nations that have offered help and the construction of barrier islands have been turned away. A man from Dallas has 12 ships waiting that could be used and isn't even receiving a response.
Third, the Jones Act has been suspended before to allow foreign help but the Admnistration is dragging its feet and not given any indication that they intend to lif the Jones Act ban. Meanwhile, they have made an exception for foreign boats that are constructing wind turbines off the east coast.
Fourth, the Jones Act protects unions. Maritime employment is one of the last bastions of heavily unionized workers. Unions don't want to see the Jones Act suspended because they are more worried about union paychecks than the Louisiana coast. It's not beyond immagination to make the connection that the Administration is not lifting the ban because of their ties to labor.
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