A Presidential Crisis Center. A Plea from the Gulf.

[skip fox]

Absolutely the best way to dealing with this crisis both politically and in actuality is to create a crisis command center.

Like a mini-Manhattan Project, Obama should establish a physical crisis command center on the Gulf, fly in and house the best engineering, chemical, biological, medical, wildlife, legal, &c. minds. Let them live down here and exchange information with one another in a designated cluster of buildings (don't scatter them around an area--nothing on the cheap). STREAMLINE everything with the best minds in agency efficiency. Have an entire division devoted to nothing but streamlnging, cutting through red-tape, etc. Designate the best administrator that can be had and have in daily contact with all of the governors involved as well as the president himself. (There should be someone as smart, efficient, and respected as Kenneth Feinberg is in his area of expertise.)

This is really what we need now.

(P.S., BP should finance this, not the American taxpayer.)

Politically it will be highly adventageous. Obama could visit occasionally and have weekly video conferences with the heads of the divisions. Reporters could be allowed in to at least a portion of each conference.

Obama has almost lost control of this crisis politically. 41 percent approval. Creating such a center, if done rightly (showing its efficiency, activity, brainstormin ability) should not only change the approval level but be effective in stopping the crisis, cleaning up the spill, etc.

[skip fox]

1. This is the only thing I can imagine to do consisently good work and be of political

worth.

[lunatica]

2. Where would the crisis center be? Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Florida?

I have to keep reminding myself that it's a huge area, which also makes me wonder how in the hell BP can police it and keep people away.

As for people taking pictures. With iphones can't someone just move around freely and take photos and send them to other people right away? If people can flood into our country through the borders which are supposedly patrolled then why can't people flood onto the beaches on the Gulf to take photos? It's hundreds of miles.

[skip fox]

3. I'm in Southern Louisiana so I prefer Louisiana,but anywhere alone the Gulf

with high visibility, a nearby airbase a port. Maybe New Orleans, maybe Mobile.

New Orleans has highest national exposure and mighh be the best place to get peopel to relocate to for 6-12 month (or longer?) stretches.

[skip fox]

4. I put an abbreviated form of this on Rachel Maddow's blog.

Can't say how much I think of her.

[skip fox]

5. This could even save the Midterms!

[Mojeoux]

6. Good Idea

I'd like to see Biden down there too.

[skip fox]

7. There's a great idea politically. It might even be effective practically.

[Mojeoux]

8. Biden has that working class vibe, I think he would be surprisingly effective.

He might be to old. The fumes are dangerous.

[skip fox]

9. Thad Allen seems like a nice person and effective aministrator, but

I think the overall job is bend him. Biden, if focused and energized, might be fantastic.