where IS the Cavalry?

I took a break to watch CNN a few minutes ago, which is always bad for your mental health. They were interviewing a sheriff in Virginia who put an emergency response team of 22 deputies on the road, with all the gear they needed to be self-sufficient, and he spent hours on the phone trying to get authorization. He was finally told by some dimwit at the Louisiana state police that they weren't asking for help, so he called his deputies back (they were three hours down the road).

The bureaucratic mind is an awful thing to behold.

(a) After saddling up to ride, why spend hours trying to get "authorization?" He didn't say so, but I'll guess he was worrying about his budget and whether he would get reimbursed (or be required to pay the expenses out of his own pocket), and who would cover the liability for any damages they might cause, or injuries to his deputies, or loss of property. Under these circumstances, this is like a fire truck barred from a fire by a picket fence. When that happens, the picket fence becomes history.

(b) Who in Louisiana with an IQ above room temperature would dare tell a sheriff from out of state to keep his troops at home? I hope that imbecile has already lost his job.