The Wire

The evacuation of New Orleans in the wake of Hurricane Katrina is nearly complete. However, the political fallout from the disaster is only just beginning. Serious questions are now being asked about the way in which the Bush administration handled the disaster. New Orleans had to wait 5 days until an all-out relief effort was coordinated, far longer than it took for the Bush administration to coordinate a response to the terrorist attacks on New York in 2001. While the people of New Orleans waited for federal disaster assistance the city descended into anarchy. Reports of rape, murder and looting increased as social order broke down and severe shortages of water, food and medicine began to take their toll on the population. Increasing amounts of anger are being directed at President Bush over what many view as his inadequate and irresponsible reaction to the disaster. The suggestion has been raised that the President’s fixation on Iraq clouded his judgment and led to unnecessary suffering and loss of life. Last week, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin publicly voiced his anger federal authorities in an interview with Garland Robinette on local New Orleans radio station WWL-AM.