There has been a lot of whining about the "handouts" to NOLA, however the biggest handouts have been to corporate america and most has not trickled down to the folks who need it the most. Here is a classic case of installing pumps that were faulty and would not have protected NOLA last Hurricane Season. Interestingly the pumps were supplied by a company who has had problems in the past with fulfilling their contracts, and was at one time co-owned by Jeb Bush.. guess ethics is something that is not a strong suit amongst this administration. This is posted from the Fox News Site, to demonstrate how even though these actions are obviously wrong, there is an underlying note that because of the quick need it is ok.
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,258602,00.html
The Army Corps of Engineers, rushing to meet President Bush's promise to protect New Orleans by the start of the 2006 hurricane season, installed defective flood-control pumps last year despite warnings from its own expert that the equipment would fail during a storm, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press.
The 2006 hurricane season turned out to be mild, and the new pumps were never pressed into action. But the Corps and the politically connected manufacturer of the equipment are still struggling to get the 34 heavy-duty pumps working properly.
The pumps are now being pulled out and overhauled because of excessive vibration, Corps officials said. Other problems have included overheated engines, broken hoses and blown gaskets, according to the documents obtained by AP....
The drainage-canal pumps were custom-designed and built under a $26.6 million contract awarded after competitive bidding to Moving Water Industries Corp. of Deerfield Beach, Fla. It was founded in 1926 and supplies flood-control and irrigation pumps all over the world.
MWI is owned by J. David Eller and his sons. Eller was once a business partner of former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush in a venture called Bush-El that marketed MWI pumps. And Eller has donated about $128,000 to politicians, the vast majority of it to the Republican Party, since 1996, according to the Center for Responsive Politics.
MWI has run into trouble before. The U.S. Justice Department sued the company in 2002, accusing it of fraudulently helping Nigeria obtain $74 million in taxpayer-backed loans for overpriced and unnecessary water-pump equipment. The case has yet to be resolved
03-14-2007, 06:10 AM
Fox News Reports Faulty Pumps Installed in NOLA.. l
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