US embassy cable - 05DHAKA4447

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 DHAKA 004447 
 
SIPDIS 
 
FOR I/FW, B/G, IIP/G/NEA-SA, B/VOA/N (BANGLA SERVICE) STATE 
FOR SA/PAB, SA/PPD (LSCENSNY), SA/RA, INR/R/MR, AND PASS TO 
USAID FOR ANE/ASIA/SA/B 
 
CINCPAC FOR PUBLIC DIPLOMACY ADVISOR, J51 (LCDR FLETCHER), 
J45 (MAJ NICHOLLS) 
 
USARPAC FOR APOP-IM (MAJ STYNER) 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KMDR, OIIP, OPRC, KPAO, PREL, ETRD, PTER, ASEC, BG, OCII 
SUBJECT: Media Reaction: Aftermath of Katrina, U.S. Supreme 
Court; Dhaka 
 
Summary: Independent English "Daily Star" says that the 
Katrina tragedy has laid bare the poverty in the U.S. and 
the government inaction. 
 
On the death of Chief Justice Rehnquist, Independent English 
"New Age" says that this provides President Bush an 
opportunity to leave behind a lasting legacy through Supreme 
Court appointments which may determine the course of the 
nation for a long time. 
 
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1. Aftermath of Katrina 
----------------------- 
 
"Katrina Fallout Issues: Tragedy Compounded by Governance 
Failure" 
English language newspaper "Daily Star" editorially comments 
(9/8): 
 
The destruction of the city of New Orleans by Hurricane 
Katrina and the accompanying massive loss of life has been 
nothing short of mind-boggling. New Orleans lies in ruins. 
It needs to be totally evacuated, and months will be needed 
before it is even habitable again. The cost of 
reconstruction is estimated to top $100 billion. Even more 
chillingly, as the authorities go door to door and street to 
street to recover corpses, the death toll has climbed into 
the thousands, and may reach as high as 10,000, over three 
times the toll of 9/11. 
Disaster relief was made a low priority by the current 
administration. Money that was needed to shore up levees and 
provide emergency relief was diverted to tax cuts for the 
wealthy, and President Bush's selection of a crony with zero 
relevant experience to run the agency is evidence of his 
indifference to its mission. 
The hurricane has also laid bare the fact of poverty in the 
US and its effects. Most of the victims who were trapped in 
the city could not leave. They had no money, no transport, 
and nowhere to go. Plans to evacuate them before the city 
flooded, and to rescue them after, were incomplete and 
inefficient. The heavily African-American make-up of the 
victims only serves to highlight the racial underpinnings of 
such poverty. It was mostly poor blacks who were left behind 
and not taken care of by the government. 
The administration is already in furious damage control, 
attempting to minimize the political fall-out with an 
intensity it conspicuously didn't bring to the actual 
crisis. President Bush's policies, his inaction, and his 
self-serving statements that "no one could have anticipated" 
the devastation, all underline how important it is that 
there must be a true investigation to get to the bottom of 
how such a catastrophe could have occurred. The dead and 
dispossessed deserve more than a 9/11 Commission style white- 
wash that holds no one accountable. 
In Bangladesh, we understand only too well the destructive 
power of nature, and our hearts and prayers must go out to 
America in its hour of need. The Bangladesh government has 
pledged to send $1 million, which we applaud as a token of 
gesture, and it is indeed poignant to think that the US 
could perhaps have benefited in terms of logistical planning 
and rescue and relief operations from the lessons that we 
have learned through hard experience. 
 
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2. U.S. Supreme Court 
--------------------- 
"President Bush's Legacy" 
Independent English language newspaper "New Age" editorially 
comments 9/8): 
Some pretty interesting things have been happening in 
America. Of course, with much of the world glued to news of 
Hurricane Katrina, not many may have noticed what has been 
occurring elsewhere in the United States. We refer to the 
recent death of Supreme Court Chief Justice William 
Rehnquist. The long serving justice died a few days ago of 
cancer and thereby gave President George W. Bush a unique 
opportunity of filling two empty positions on the court. 
When a few months ago Justice Sandra Day O' Connor decided 
to retire from her position, the president nominated John 
Roberts to take her place. The new associate justice- 
designate was almost through his confirmation process in the 
Senate when Chief Justice Rehnquist died. President Bush 
lost little time in advancing the case for Roberts a little 
further through then naming him to succeed Rehnquist rather 
than O'Connor. 
 
The stage is therefore set for a fresh new battle. Democrats 
in the Senate are already giving out every indication that 
Roberts will now face tougher scrutiny since he now means to 
preside over the Supreme Court. While all this fresh new 
battle is joined by both Republican and Democrats, President 
Bush will be looking for a new person to actually replace 
Justice O'Connor and clearly he will be angling for someone 
who will strengthen the conservative hold on the highest 
judiciary in the country. 
 
In the United States, the shape and complexion of the 
Supreme Court are what decide the long-term political and 
social future of the country. Mr. Bush, despite his failings 
in leadership (the most recent of which has been his 
inability to rally the country on the Hurricane Katrina 
issue), now finds himself in the unique position of leaving 
a lasting legacy through the instrument of the Supreme 
Court. For a man to whom a right-wing ideology matters, the 
two openings on the bench are a chance that will be utilized 
to the fullest extent. One can therefore rest assured that 
this president of the United States, for all his 
intellectual limitations and controversial foreign policy, 
will yet cast a long shadow on the Supreme Court. A hint of 
how deep the shadow will be can be assessed when the 
president names the successor to Justice O'Connor. 
Chammas