commodities, and also bringing in some search and rescue teams to help with cadaver dogs. they are on the way in right now. both from california and washington. will support the great fire department you have here. our individual assistance programme is the key programme for individuals. those that are survivors who have either lost loved ones or you can t get back to your house or you think you ve been impacted by this storm, go ahead and phone 1800 320 6232, the fema number. you could also go to disasterassistance.gov. it fema disasterassistance. gov. it fema can disasterassistance.gov. it fema can assist with home of repair and replacement another non essential personal property losses, keep any receipts you
. as you join us, we are awaiting remarks from the president and new jersey governor chris christie. there s the microphone set and ready for them. we understand that they ll be at that microphone very soon. the pair touring hurricane-damaged areas of new jersey today, witnessing firsthand both the devastation and the importance of fema. and joining us now from washington, jared bernstein, who s formerly the chief economic adviser to the vice president and jonathan capehart, an opinion writer for the washington post. both are msnbc contributors. jared, i understand you yourself had something of a power cut and you had to go to duncan doughnuts to get some work done. and while you were sitting there, you had some time to reflect on fema, on mitt romney, and on the paul ryan budget. what did you conclude, jared?
know, that we had someone in office, who could do something about it. not so implicit knock against governor romney, who has made it clear, both in that convention speech, but in speeches prior to that convention speech, that he just doesn t buy the notion that mankind, humankind, is responsible in any way for the changes in climate that we ve been experiencing. martin, can i make a quick point? please. just to be clear, something i said earlier. i wanted to get back to that, it is the case that fema, funding for fema, is not exempt from the automatic cuts or so-called sequestration. so if the sequestration does occur, these automatic cuts, $110 billion next year, that will hit fema as well. another good reason to try to make sure that doesn t happen. indeed. i believe we have ed markey with us at the moment. is that right, sir?
romney, finger in the air, wind blowing, oh, it s a heavy storm, i support fema. this is embarrassing. it only took him 48 hours to support fema. you would hope that president romney could respond to a storm faster than he did about fema. but it s very hard to square with what he s saying about fema now with the very morality-laden approach that he took in the republican debates. remember, what he s describing in the statement is actually status quo, it s not big change. but it is a big change from what he said before. which is, you know, fema funding, if it comes from debt, which every extra dollar does is a moral problem for this nation. is a moral problem. it s not just an issue of money. it s a moral problem. more than the moral problem of dealing with people in need in a disaster zone. now that has been jettisoned, because hep wants to appear moderate. it s very hard to know who the real mitt romney is, but at least he could speed up his
beyond party. they re not republicans and democrats in new jersey, they re just americans in need. and those messages, of course, resonate with americans in general. they also happen to be part of what the president and what governor christie is talking about. you know, this is the kind of politics that independent voters, moderates, the gettable, undecided that tiny number. that s what they want to see. they want to see a system that works. and when you have frankly, someone who is brash and outspoken and conservative, working with a president who s supposed to be polarizing, christie and obama working together with a single focus, i think it actually encourages people about politics, about government, and about these two individuals. because it does take leaders, it does take individuals, full credit to the two men involved. indeed. i would say a hearty amen to that. eugene, the president has been pretty evenhanded in the way he s responded to this storm. he tells fema, no bu