SCHUMER'S SHAME
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September 10, 2005 -- So, while many Americans were busy contributing money, clothing and other necessities for hurricane-devastated Gulf Coast residents, what was Sen. Chuck Schumer up to?
Raising money off the backs of Katrina's victims — for the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee.
In one of the more cynical tricks we've seen lately, Schumer's DSCC urged visitors to its Web site to sign a petition urging the firing of Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Michael Brown, the focus of much of the criticism of the federal response to Katrina.
(Indeed, Brown was summoned back to Washington yesterday as Coast Guard Vice Adm. Thad W. Allen took over the Louisiana relief effort — signs that hardly bode well for the FEMA chief.)
A click on the petition opened a page requesting a donation to the DSCC, the party organization focused on recruiting and supporting Senate Democrats.
Only after the press blew the whistle did the tasteless scheme end. The committee yanked the link and agreed to donate any funds raised to charity.
Efforts to politicize Katrina continue apace; certainly Schumer isn't the only pol seeking to take crass advantage of an indescribable human tragedy.
But he is from New York, which is approaching the fourth anniversary of a tragedy of its own — and certainly he should know better.
Chuck Schumer should be ashamed of himself.
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