Bush Administration Too Busy For Ailing 9/11 Workers

We would never expect the President to show up in New York to be held accountable for the sacrifices that many heroes made after 9/11. Yet it would be nice if one White House staffer could make their way down Pennsylvania Avenue and answer questions as to why rescue workers that live outside of New York aren't being taken care of.

From The Daily News:

"Responders rushed from all over the country to help New York on 9/11. But [the U.S. Health and Human Services Department] couldn't find one person in the building to come to New York?" said Rep. Carolyn Maloney (D-Manhattan, Queens).

"They don't fight for 9/11 health programs. Instead, they fight to stop them."

A spokeswoman who returned a call to the Health and Human Services Department said officials would answer questions at another time.

That's not good enough for Rep. Edolphus Towns (D-Brooklyn), who leads the House oversight subcommittee on government management, organization and procurement.

"If I must issue subpoenas, that is what I will do," Towns vowed. "The administration's handling of 9/11 health care is one of the worst-managed programs I have ever seen."

So technically it is the Health and Human Services Department that is neglecting our heroes from out of town, but that is still under the Bush Administration, and that could have easily been solved. And of course we wouldn't have been in this mess in the first place if the White House took care of these workers from the start. Now they are ducking their responsibility and ignoring Congress. Congressman Towns can threaten to wield the subpoena, but since Congress is already so weak-kneed in front of the President, I doubt it will bring anything forward. One effect of a crumbling democracy is a lack of accountability, even if Congress says they want action, they can't deliver it.

Bush Turns His Back On 9/11 Workers Again

He may not have had to do it himself, but the Department of Health and Human Services walked away from a commitment to men and women that risked their lives on September 11th. As long as its a federal agency, it is inherently a part of the Bush Administration. HHS no longer wants to pay to monitor workers who live outside the five boroughs, many who have sought drier climates due to their devastated respiratory systems.

From ABC7:

New York's congressional delegation and some ailing workers stood outside the World Trade Center site Saturday to protest this week's decision to not fund screening of workers outside New York City.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services filed paperwork this week canceling plans to pay a company to medically screen those who got sick after working in the toxic rubble of the trade center.

The government said the program could cost far more money than Congress has provided. U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler, D-N.Y., on Saturday said of the explanation: "That takes a lot of chutzpah."

It takes more than chutzpah, it requires a callousness of the heart and soul that is unimaginable here in New York. Who in their right mind would not want to give anything to those that worked on the pile, whether they were searching for survivors or cleaning up the wreckage. Obviously Bush and his underlings are not in their right minds.