Creigh Deeds and 9-11: He’s horribly wrong
By Brian Kirwin | Tuesday, July 21st, 2009 | PoliticsI don’t know what’s more sickening. That Creigh Deeds would use September 11th to push his transportation plan, or that he’d be so horribly misinformed and still be considered a legitimate candidate for Governor.
“We need to invest in greater capacity at the bridges and tunnels in Hampton Roads,” Deeds said. “If we have a hurricane or a 9/11 -style strike, we have a lot of people who aren’t going to be able to get out,” he said. (Daily Press)
Only one problem with your strategy to use fear of terrorist attacks to further your transportation schemes, Creigh.
9:21 a.m.: The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey orders all bridges and tunnels in the New York area closed. (9-11 CNN)
That’s right, Creigh. Within 20 minutes of the second airliner strike, all bridges and tunnels were shut down.
So, how does “greater capacity” help in a “9/11 style strike” when the bridges and tunnels will be shut down anyway?
Creigh, be straight with Virginia voters and issue a press release apologizing for your mistaken use of the horrible terror attacks to further your transportation argument. A case can be made for improving tunnels in Hampton Roads, but yours went too far.
Tags:
Contribute for Conservatism!
Share this post
About the author
The right wants to jeer him. The left wants to censor him. Moderates usually want both. Brian Kirwin is a political consultant and public relations strategist in Virginia Beach with a lightning-rod flair. Brian also serves on the VB Arts & Humanities Commission and frequently appears on Hampton Roads theatrical stages, if only to prove that all actors aren’t liberals. Kirwin’s columns stir up debate and hit the political scene with no punches pulled.
Comments
7 Responses to "Creigh Deeds and 9-11: He’s horribly wrong"
[...] aside the fact that bridges and tunnels in New York were shut down within an hour of the attack, as Brian Kirwin notes over at BD. Leave aside further the rather odd reach for the terrorist attack to scare voters into doing [...]
I wonder whether rules for responding to terrorist attacks have been revised since 9/11 so that the government (in its infinite wisdom) does not close down transportation and prevent the public from escaping.
If such rules exist and they have been revised, maybe Deeds is right? Who in Hampton Roads would know what the emergency plan is?
Oh come ON! Like it or not, Hampton Roads is a likely target for a terrorist attack. It’s always been considered a high-profile target, even back during the cold war. It’s not a freakin’ secret. And Deeds wasn’t the only one who mentioned what a disaster it would be if we had to mass evacuate because of an attack.
Find something else to whine about, this has no legs.
I think only a moron would think Hampton Roads is not a high-profile and very visible target for a terrorist attack.
The story here is not that Hampton Roads or NoVA or whoever is a potential target. The story is that Deeds doesn’t understand – as the potential governor who would be responsible for deploying our National Guard – is that the likely first thing to happen is a lock-down on our tunnels and bridges.
“…the likely first thing to happen is a lock-down on our tunnels and bridges.”
True – if it were an attack identical to 9/11. But a biological attack would proably have the opposite effect.
Terrorist attack aside, hurricane evacuation is the more immediate threat. The bottom line is that in a mass evacuation of Hampton Roads would be a catastrophe – whether one chose to leave or stay. Since the highway system falls under the responsibility of state government, it’s entirely appropriate for McDonnell and Deeds to be talking about it. I’m not sure why Deeds is supposed to remain mute on this issue.
Actually I think its a valid point, I’ve always argued that one reason I-66 should be widened inside the beltway is that it would be currently impossible to evacuate DC in the case of a WMD attack.
I am pretty sure when they talk about widening I-66 it is only westbound precisely for emergency evacuation
Leave your response
The comments section is for meaningful discussion. Readers are reminded to post comments that are germane to the article and write in a common language that steers clear of personal attacks and/or vulgarities.
Please take a moment to review our comment policy.