Archive » 2005 » September

President Bush has gotten a lot of grief for saying, “I don’t think anybody anticipated the breach of the levees” in New Orleans. Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.), for example, reportedly said, “Everybody anticipated the breach of the levees, Mr. President.” Pat at Brainster’s Blog makes a convincing case that Bush’s critics are ignoring a distinction [...]

Via Stephen Bainbridge, the Los Angeles Times uncovers strong evidence that environmentalists and their trial lawyers derailed a major project that might have protected New Orleans from Hurricane Katrina: In the wake of Hurricane Betsy 40 years ago, Congress approved a massive hurricane barrier to protect New Orleans from storm surges that could inundate the [...]

FEMA head Michael Brown is history. Via Breitbart/AP: Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Michael Brown is being removed from his role managing Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, The Associated Press has learned. Brown is being sent back to Washington from Baton Rouge, where he was the primary official overseeing the federal government’s response to the disaster, [...]

Just in over the last hour via Breitbart/AP: A federal appeals court Friday sided with the Bush administration and reversed a judge’s order that the government either charge or free “dirty bomb” suspect Jose Padilla. The three-judge panel of the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled unanimously that the president has the authority to [...]

***scroll down for updates*** The Flight 93 Memorial design, titled “The Crescent of Embrace,” was unveiled this week. Take a close look: Remind you of anything? Tom Bevan at the indispensable Real Clear Politics gently raises some questions about the design. Charles at Little Green Footballs asks: “Is this a coincidence, an example of amazing [...]

The fight to protect Ground Zero from the Blame America crowd continues today with a rally tomorrow in NYC beginning at 930am EDT. Go to Take Back the Memorial for more details, and the latest news on the 9/11 families efforts to stop construction of the “International Freedom Center” on hallowed ground. *** Previous: Take [...]

Tancredo sez: Fire Michael Brown *** Previous: Nagin and Brown: peas in a pod FEMA fraud alert Memo to Bush: Fire Michael Brown

John Stossel of ABC News appeared on The O’Reilly Factor this evening in an excellent segment on the idiotic incentives that FEMA and the National Flood Insurance Program create for wealthy people to build in high-risk areas. Stossel knows about the government boondoggle personally–he built a beachside home and was compensated by your money and [...]

Tons of bloggers and readers pointing today to this firsthand account of deadly bureaucratic bungling. Hat tip: Mark Moore with more: This story relates the “in control” situation that allowed Governor Kathleen Blanco to so cavalierly refuse the president’s request to place all law enforcement under central command. There was some mention last week about [...]

Milblogger Smash reaches across the aisle to the anti-war zealots of Code Pink to raise money for Katrina victims…and gets some results. Kudos!

***235pm EDT: Updated with just-released statement from NYC Department of Investigations*** Yesterday, in our latest joint investigative piece on Air America and the Gloria Wise Boys and Girls Club loan scandal, Brian Maloney and I reported that “knowledgeable sources tell us the liberal radio network is contemplating how to stem the lingering bad publicity. Anticipating [...]

Former Louisiana resident Greyhawk at Mudville Gazette has the lowdown on the feuding between Gov. Kathleen Blanco and New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin.

A reader sends an appeal for Katrina relief from residents of Pascagoula, Miss.: Children who now have no homes to speak of, do not have any of the things available to occupy their minds. No only are they scared and terrified by all the hurricane damaged, and they have nothing to help take the stress [...]

MoveOn.org steps into the Bush-deranged circus, via e-mailer Andy Bryant and U.S. Newswire (check out the advice to the MSM at the end of the release about “excellent visuals;” the NYTimes has already set aside space on its Friday front page): To: Assignment Desk, Daybook Editor Contact: Trevor Fitzgibbon, Kawana Lloyd or Alex Howe, 202-822-5200, [...]

Am scheduled to appear on The O’Reilly Factor, Fox News Channel, in the first half hour. Topic: Hurricane Katrina politics. Glenn Reynolds sums things up nicely. Update: Video at The Political Teen.

Check out Mary Katherine Ham’s slideshow at Townhall.com. Pass it around.

Austin Bay catches the NYTimes in the act of libeling the good people of Houston. There was a time when the snobs at the Times could get away with this stuff. No more.

That’s the subject of my latest syndicated column on Hillary, Hurricane Katrina, and the soiled legacy of the 9/11 Commission. Excerpt: Sen. Clinton’s “Katrina Commission” would be modeled after the “independent” 9/11 Commission. I can see it now: Democrat Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco, whose main imperative is covering up her own culpability, will be the [...]

Inside Air America: Al Franken’s Lying Lies Part of an ongoing investigative blog series by Brian Maloney and Michelle Malkin Sept. 7, 2005 (Part II of this installment is at The Radio Equalizer) *** Take a close look at this signature.

Via Steve J. at Angry in the Great White North, CNN is reporting that the Superdome may be torn down: The Louisiana Superdome was so heavily damaged during Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath that it likely will have to be torn down, according to a spokesperson for Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco. Katrina sheared away much [...]

John Hinderaker at Power Line gives the Bush-deranged NYTimes columnist a much-needed rhetorical paddling over his unreality-based claims about the role of the U.S.S. Bataan in Katrina rescue efforts. An excerpt: Perhaps Krugman doesn’t know that large naval vessels like the U.S.S. Bataan all have web sites. Perhaps he doesn’t know that there is a [...]

Reader Kevin sends a link to the U.S. Navy’s Katrina rescue photo gallery. Check it out.

Compare and contrast: I’ll take Operation Kick Butt over Operation Red Cup any day. *** Lorie Byrd at PoliPundit with more. And I received this e-mail yesterday: I retired from the Air Force Reserves last month. My assignment for the last 5 years was supporting 1st Army in Atlanta, LTG Honore’s unit. He is very [...]

Watch out Thursday night on ABC for the National Football League’s season-opening celebration show. The line-up includes: – Kanye “It’s all about me” West – The neo-con-bashing Rolling Stones – The moonbats of Green Day – DNC performers Maroon 5 Will they take Laura Ingraham’s advice? Stay tuned…

A prediction: Some of the stories being circulated about rape, murder, and havoc in New Orleans are not going to hold up under scrutiny. This is not to minimize the countless horrors that have occurred in Katrina’s aftermath. But the truth of what happened is awful enough without having to embellish it. Item 1: Civil [...]

Just about the only good thing about Hurricane Katrina is that it delayed a planned vote on cloture for the awful Akaka bill. Call the Capitol Switchboard today at (202) 224-3121 and urge your Senators not to support apartheid in Hawaii. *** Related: Rush Limbaugh Sounds Off on Akaka Bill Tell the Senate: No on [...]

New Orleans Mayor C. Ray Nagin has begun criticizing Lousiana Governor Kathleen Blanco. CNN has the video and the transcript. (Hat tips: LGF, Wizbang.)

Another Republican Senator is criticizing FEMA’s performance in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, CNN reports: Sen. Trent Lott berated both the Federal Emergency Management Agency and his own state’s emergency management, MEMA, for being mired in red tape at a time of urgent need given the devastation left by Hurricane Katrina. Lott said he has [...]

Volunteers helping to rescue Katrina victims want you to read the stories of hidden heroes in New Orleans. (Hat tip: Think Dude). Here’s just one: This was in a really rough neighborhood and we came across five seemingly unsavory characters. One had scars from what seemed to be gunshot wounds. We found these guys at [...]

…to contribute to the Hurricane Katrina Blog for Relief fund, which ends at midnight tonight. See who’s raising what here. Log your contribution here. Special thanks to the 253 readers of this blog who have donated $36,269 to my recommended charity, Mercy Corps, and many other worthy groups so far. Ok, the rest of you: [...]