Teta040 said:
Has it ever occurred to you Republicans that the local Dems in the area might be just as scared of an independent comission, 9/11 style, to investigate the response, as Bush is? Having an truly independent Comission to investigte (as opposed to "bipartisan" "inquiry" Congressioanl sham that Bush wants is a farce. Wihtout the public knowing the real truth, locals can't be prosecuted either. They're hiding too.
There is more than enough blame to go around on every level of government from Bush on down, but the more I see New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin on TV the more I think the guy is a sleazeball and a total political hack. I'm not from the south and I'd never heard of the guy before Katrina so I'm basing my opinion on the media coverage. From that media coverage here are the basics:
- On 8/27 Nagin issued a state of emergency for New Orleans (this came a full day after Gov. Blanco had issued a state of emergency for all of Louisiana and several hours after Pres. Bush had done the same) and he issued a
voluntary evacuation. He did not yet issue a mandatory evacuation because he was having his legal team determine if he could order a mandatory evacuation without exposing the city to legal liability for the closure of hotels and other businesses.
- On 8/28 he ordered a mandatory evacuation of New Orleans but, other than making that announcement, he didn't take any real steps to assist those who did not have a way or means to evacuate the city (such as using the city school buses). Instead he relied on people to get out on their own or to get to the 'safe' shelters.
- On a radio broadcast a few days after Katrina, Nagin issues a cursing, screaming plea for help from federal officials. He also states that the death toll could reach 10,000 which appears to be nothing more than a guess on his part, but it is immediately reported as an official estimate.
- The week following Katrina, the military moves in and takes charge of the relief and recovery efforts. This appears to please Nagin who heaps praise on the man in charge of the military, Lt. Gen. Russel Honore, as a man who can "get some stuff done".
- Later in the week Nagin states that people refusing to leave their homes will no longer be given food and water and will be forcibly evacuated. This apparently comes as a surprise to Gen. Honore who says that his troops will not refuse to give food and water and that if the mayor wants forced evacuations then the New Orleans police will have to do it.
- Last weekend Nagin left New Orleans for several days to go to Dallas where he set his family up in a home and enrolled his kids in school there. There's nothing wrong with him being concerned for his own family, but this came as people were still being rescued from 'his' city and as news reports were surfacing about the horrific deaths at nursing homes and hospitals which were not evacuated before the storm.
- Upon his return to New Orleans Nagin had completely changed his tune from his earlier statements of forcible evacuations and now cheerfully stated that parts of the city were ready to be re-opened and that nearly 200,000 people would be returning within a couple of weeks. This apparently comes as a surprise to the man in charge of Katrina relief efforts, Coast Guard Vice Admiral Thad Allen, who states that Nagin's plan is 'problematic'.
From these media reports, this is the impression I have gotten of Nagin - before the storm he was more concerned about businesses and the tourism industry than he was about his citizens; before, during, and after the storm he was completely overwhelmed and had no clue how to go about the task placed before him; after the military has cleaned up the mess, he is now back to being more concerned about businesses and tourism which is why he is so anxious to get parts of the city re-opened. Am I wrong? Is this guy not the sleazeball I think he is?
. 
. 
. 
.
