Hurricane Katrina wreaked havoc in the lives of millions of Gulf Coast residents. Rather than helping these communities cope with the tremendous upheaval, the Bush administration is using the catastrophe as a starting point for attacks on working people.President George W. Bush already has issued an executive order taking wage protections away from construction workers who will rebuild the Gulf Coast. Lowering wages for those who most need them will not help workers in their recovery efforts. It will be a real boon, though, for the unscrupulous contractors who will reap windfall profits at working families' expense.
In addition to the wage protection rollback, the administration already has handed out no-bid contracts to companies with ties to the administration and Republican Party while deferring affirmative action requirements and weakening preferences for small and minority-owned business.
The Bush administration also has suspended requirements that petroleum products travel on U.S.-flagged ships while operating in U.S. coastal waters and eased rules on how many hours truckers can drive when transporting fuel.
Bush's people also are using the disaster to forward their agendas on school vouchers, tax credits, health care--and even Social Security privatization.
Hurricane Katrina's victims deserve real help in their time of need--not this administration's cold-hearted actions.
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