Bloomberg News: Firefighters Say Giuliani Ignored Their Needs After Sept. 11

Firefighters Say Giuliani Ignored Their Needs After Sept. 11
By Kim Chipman

March 9 (Bloomberg) -- Rudy Giuliani, who has parlayed his identity as the hero of Sept. 11 into a front-running presidential candidacy, was himself attacked by the nation's firefighters union for rushing to remove debris at New York's World Trade Center site before many remains had been recovered.

The International Association of Fire Fighters union said it wants its 260,000 U.S. members to know the "real story'' of the former New York mayor, contending that Giuliani sought to curtail search-and-recovery efforts at the World Trade Center site after the attacks on Sept. 11, 2001, that claimed the lives of 2,752 people, including 343 union fire fighters.

"Mayor Giuliani's actions meant that fire fighters and citizens who perished would either remain buried at Ground Zero forever, with no closure for families, or be removed like garbage and deposited at the Fresh Kills Landfill,'' said union President Harold Schaitberger in a draft letter to affiliates....

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The Washington-based union said that local union presidents tried to meet with Giuliani to stop the action, and the mayor refused to see them. It also said 15 protesting fire fighters were arrested on Giuliani's orders. The union said public outrage ultimately compelled Giuliani to reverse his position.

"Our protests were later proven justified as more bodies were ultimately recovered and those families given a chance for some closure and a decent burial,'' the letter said.

The union said Giuliani was more concerned about the removal of gold, silver and other assets of the Bank of Nova Scotia that was buried beneath the rubble than he was of human remains.

"He valued the money and gold and wanted the site cleared before he left office at the end of 2001 more than he valued the lives and memories of those lost,'' the letter said.

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=washingtonstory&sid=a8o5p2XiTQhk

I was renting some vids the other day and the 20-something behind the counter said "Oh, An Inconvenient Truth .... I'd almost consider voting for Al Gore but I'm going with Rudy Guiliani." I asked why and, you guessed it, "Because he's a hero."

Rudy's supporters are in love with a mirage, the character played in media clips and sound bites in the days after 9/11.

Let's hope they pay attention between now and 11/08 as their hero is unmasked.

I have pretty much heard the same BS myself. Makes me want to :puke:

a little sand in the eye of your predecessor, eh, Michael?

Ask Trump :evilgrin:

but it is now the job of every democrat to make sure as many people know the truth.

I remember back when the news media were giving TV reports. One day a report came out that a vault had been found and the gold in it recovered. In the next few days, another report said the firefighters had been called off the search and rescue.

I'm glad that the gold "and other assets" are mentioned at the bottom of this article. It certainly seemed to me that was one primary concern at the time based upon the timeline of events.