Mayor to Bush: "Get off your asses and let's do something."
Ray Nagin: You know the reason why the looters got out of control? Because we had most of our resources saving people, thousands of people, that were stuck in attics, man... old ladies... when you pull off the doggone ventilator vent, and you look down there, and they're standing there in water up to their fricking neck...!
And they don't have a clue what's going on down there. They flew down here one time, two days after the doggone event was over, with TV cameras, AP reporters, all kinds of goddamn -- excuse my French, everybody in America, but I am pissed.
Garland Robinette: ...What do you need right now to get control of this situation?
RN: I need reinforcements. I need troops, man. I need 500 buses. Man, they were talking about... you know, one of the briefings we had, they were talking about getting public school bus drivers to come down here ... I'm like, you've got to be kidding me! This is a national disaster! Get every doggone Greyhound busline in the country, and get their asses moving to New Orleans. That's them thinking small, man.... this is a major major major deal!
And I can't emphasize this enough, man -- this is crazy! I've got 15,000-20,000 people over at the Convention Centre, it's bursting at the seams. The poor people in Plaquemines parish... they're air-vacc'ing people over here in New Orleans... we don't have anything and we're sharing with our brothers in Plaquemines parish. It's awful down here, man.
GR: Do you believe that the President is serious, holding a news conference on it, but can't do anything until [Louisiana Governor] Catherine Blanco requests him to do it, and do you know whether or not she's made that request?
RN: I have no idea what they're doing, but I'll tell you this. You know, God is looking down on all this... and if theyre not doing everything in their power to save people, they are going to pay the price. Because every day that we delay, people are dying... and they're dying by the hundreds, I'm willing to bet you.
We're getting reports in calling that are breaking my heart, from people saying, 'I'm in my attic...I can't take it any more. The water's up to my neck. I don't think I can hold out. And that's happening as we speak.
And you know what really upsets me, Garland. We told everybody the importance of the 17th Street Canal issue. We said, please, please take care of this, we don't care what you do, figure it out.
GR: Who did you say that to?
RN: Everybody -- the governor, Homeland Security, FEMA... you name it, we said it.....
RN: I'm telling you right now, they're showing all these reports of looting, people doing all that weird stuff, and they are doing that. But people are desperate. They're trying to find food and water. The majority of them.
You have some knuckleheads out there, taking advantage of the lawlessness, this situation where, you know, we can't really control it, and they're doing some awful, awful things. But that's a small [minority] of the people. Most people are looking to try and survive....
GR: You and I must be in the minority, because apparently there's a section of our citizenry out there that thinks because of a law that says the federal government can't come in unless requested by the proper people, that everything that's been going on to this point has been as good as it can possibly be.
RN: Really?
GR: I know you don't feel that way.
RN: Well... did the tsunami victims request? Did they go through a formal process to request? Did Iraq -- did the Iraqi people request that we go in there? Did they ask us to go in there?
What is more important? I tell ya man, I'm probably going to be in a whole bunch of trouble, I'm probably going to be in so much trouble it ain't even funny. You probably won't even want to deal with me after this interview is over.
GR: You and I will be in the funny place together.
RN: But -- we authorized $80 billion to go to Iraq, lickety-quick. After 9/11, we gave the president unprecedented powers -- lickety-quick -- to take care of New York and other places. Now you mean to tell me that a place where most of the oil is coming through... a place that is so unique, when you mention New Orleans anywhere around the world, everybody's eyes light up... you mean to tell me that a place where you probably have thousands people that have died, and thousands more that are dying every day, that we can't figure out a way to authorize the resources that we need? Come on, man...
GR: What can we do here?
RN: Keep talking about it.
GR: Okay, we'll do that What else can we do?
RN: Organize people to write letters, make calls to their congressmen --
GR: Emails...
RN: -- to the president, to the governor. Fill their doggone offices with requests to do something. This is ridiculous.
I don't want to see anybody do any more goddamn press conferences. Put a moratorium on press conferences. Don't do another press conference until the resources are in this city, and they come down to this city, and stand with us, with their military trucks and troops that we can't even count. Don't tell me there are 40,000 people coming here, they're not here! It's too goddamn late!
Get off your asses and let's do something. Let's fix the biggest goddamn crisis in the history of this country!
GR: I'll tell you, right now, you're the only politician that's called, and called for arms like this. And whatever it takes, the governor, the president... whatever law precedent it takes, whatever it takes... I bet that the people listening to you are on your side.
RN: Well, I hope so, Garland. I am just... I'm at the point now, where it don't matter. People are dying. They don't have homes. They don't have jobs. The City of New Orleans will never be the same. And it's time.
No Rudy
Please. Two quick points:
Neither the storm nor the recovery efforts have a racial overtone, only the commentators do. White people, admittedly suburbanites, are dying on their roofs too, and no one can get to them either. When you elevate highways over swamp land, WTF did they honestly expect.
And who's idea was it to have electric water pumps? Did they honeslty think New Orleans would NEVER lose power in a hurricane?
GMAFB>
Two, the news media's featured New Orleanian is the victim of nothig so much as malignant neglect by the politicians to whom they have blindly given their votes for more than a century. Their plight is where three and four generations of welfare dependency have left them, with no personal coping skills whatsoever, preyed upon and victimized by the strongest amongst an otherwise totally dysfunctional community.
Totally dependent upon the state and federal government, they live check to check in public housing that would shame even the Soviets. They are "educated" in the poorest public schools in the country -- the DC public schools being the only the closest comparable failure. Most have honestly never been outside the city of New Orleans.
It's too easy to blame the cold hearted Republicans and their evil Lord Bush for the plight of those left behind in New Orleans, but who should have mobilized the public transportation to get them out before the storm? The truth is, the Democratic Governor and Mayor had neither interest nor ability to move that many people anywhere.
What, they should have loaded them all on buses and sent them north until the buses ran out of gas? There was nowhere for them to go, even if they had wanted to leave.
There is enough blame and incompetence here to go around, but if we choose to ignore that, then little will ever be accomplished in response.
I suggest that, in the end, all of these issues will pushed to the background, and real solutions will be arrived at that will leave our grandchildren to wonder what the hell we were ever thinking leaving ourselves, yes all of us, so vulnerable to Mother Nature.
I could not agree with you mo
I could not agree with you more. Nagan and the governor are at fault for the people being there in the first place. If they had actually evacuated the city of New Orleans there wouldn't be anyone to rescue.
NAGAN IS DAMN RIGHT!!!!
I agree with Nagan!! I'd rather have an "asshole" attempting to get something done,than an "Asshole" that does everything at his fucking convience.....now put that in your pipe and smoke it!!!!
Good Job Let's re-evaluate your efforts in the mist of a storm
Thanks for your comments, I was tired of the words without actions. I could not believe that there were no better plans to get the citizens left behind out of the city quicker. Leaving them in harms way and fending for themselves surely will be a stink/plaque in our history of New Orleans, Louisiana and most of all America.
Thank you for bravery and risking your life in poltics to save the rest of the lives left in New Orleans. Many people will not give you the credit but I know better. It took lots of courage and it was like shooting oneself in both feet and having to drag yourself out into that nasty flood water filled with toxic agents.
Brace yourself for the negative comments and the reframers of the world. When history is rewritten if we don't save our memories and own diaries we will be served a lot of double speak and blame the local police, bus drivers, mayors and people oppose to the lack of a defense by our country.
I looking for the President to be the leader and take responsibility and say we dropped the ball but we are know going to.....
I would have even respected a one liner with action other than saying that the infantry is on its way. I personally bursted with pride when you began to show humanitiarn sentiment and demand for leaders to do the right thing. Of course the blame will be throwm and those who never step foot on our soggy land will get to say what if, and they should have, thanks for what you did and keep doing it until everyone is out!
Good Job Let's re-evaluate your efforts in the mist of a storm
Thanks for your comments, I was tired of the words without actions. I could not believe that there were no better plans to get the citizens left behind out of the city quicker. Leaving them in harms way and fending for themselves surely will be a stink/plaque in our history of New Orleans, Louisiana and most of all America.
Thank you for bravery and risking your life in poltics to save the rest of the lives left in New Orleans. Many people will not give you the credit but I know better. It took lots of courage and it was like shooting oneself in both feet and having to drag yourself out into that nasty flood water filled with toxic agents.
Brace yourself for the negative comments and the reframers of the world. When history is rewritten if we don't save our memories and own diaries we will be served a lot of double speak and blame the local police, bus drivers, mayors and people oppose to the lack of a defense by our country.
I looking for the President to be the leader and take responsibility and say we dropped the ball but we are know going to.....
I would have even respected a one liner with action other than saying that the infantry is on its way. I personally bursted with pride when you began to show humanitiarn sentiment and demand for leaders to do the right thing. Of course the blame will be throwm and those who never step foot on our soggy land will get to say what if, and they should have, thanks for what you did and keep doing it until everyone is out!
Nagin and Blanco are political embarassments
Nagin is sitting there bitching and whining about the federal government not doing its part. What about the hundreds and hundreds of school buses sitting in their parking lots doing nothing. Don't sit there and ask for Greyhounds when you already have resources at your disposal. A while back The Army Corps of Engineers tried to reinforce that very levee that broke, but the democrats and their environmental groups blocked that attempt by suing for environmental reasons. Also there was 60million dollars given to the new orleans city government to come up with a valid evacuation plan. 45million of that was used to "determine what road repairs would be necessary on the New Orleans road system in the future." The other 15million vanished into thin air...or possibly into the pockets of Nagin and his whiny self. People make it seem like blaming Nagin would make the accuser racist. He is incompetent to lead a group of boy scouts and needs to resign along with that tool of a governor.
NAGIN-BLANCO-CHERTNOFF ---- RESIGNATION
IF THE PRESIDENT WANTS TO PAY FOR HIS GOVERNMENTAL SHORTCOMING IN THE GULF REGION, INSTEAD OF ALLOWING THE TAKING FROM THE POOR THAT NEED THEIR MEDICATIONS, WHY NOT SCRAP THE 100 BILLION NASA PROGRAM THAT IS SO GREATLY NEEDED IN WHICH PEOPLE ARE SO VERY MUCH DEPENDANT ON TO SURVIVE. I'M SURE NOT!
EVEN THOUGH STATEMENT OF RAISING TAXES WAS MADE, I DON'T KNOW WHY I NOW DON'T BELIEVE IT. I HAVE A STUPID IDEA, INSTEAD OF CUTTING PROGRAMS THAT HELP OUR ELDERLY HAVE HARDLY ANYTHING TO SURVIVE ON THE GOVENRMENT HELPS THEM WITH TO BEGIN WITH, AFTER THEY'VE GIVEN A LIFE LONG OF WORK AND NOW DEPEND (FOOLISH THEM) ON OUR LACK OF GOVERNMENT THAT DEMONSTRATED THEIR FINE HOME SECURITY AND PROTECTION, WITH THE HEAD OF SUCH THAT THOUGHT LOUISIANNA IS A CITY. I FEEL SO SAFE SHOULD THE ENEMY EVER INFILTRATE US. NOT!!!
I AM APPALLED OUR GOVERNMENT WOULD LET THE STUPIDITY OF LEADERS AS MAYOR NAGEN AND GOVERNOR BLANCO ALLOW ITS' PEOPLE TO COME BACK INTO SUCH A UNSAFE HEALTH RIDDEN PLACE AS ORLEANS WITHOUT STOPPING SUCH AN EFFORT TO CONTINUE. NAGIN IS NOT A SAFE LEADER AND WHY IT'S NOT EMPHASIZED WHERE THIS SHMOE I BELIEVE LIVES AND WAS AT THE TIME OF THE HORRIFFIC HURRICANE, IT MAKES ME WONDER. I CERTAINLY MAY BE MISTAKEN, HOWOVER, YOU MAY FIND, THIS SO CALLED LEADER MAY NOT HAVE BEEN IN HIS OWN CITY AT THE TIME AND MAY HAVE BEEN IN TEXAS WITH HIS FAMILY WHERE THEY RESIDE WHEN THE CATASTROPHE HIT. I HOPE I MAY BE CORRECTED ON THIS AND IF NOT, THIS SHOULD BE AN IMMEDIATE REASON FOR DISMISSIAL ESPECIALLY WHEN YOU HAVE A MAN TRYING TO CON THESE PEOPLE HE ALMOST DROWNED BACK INTO THE AREA INTO BACTERIA RIDDEN HOMES. UNTIL HE MOST RECENTLY CHANGED HIS MIND AND I DON'T BELIEVE IT WAS ON HIS OWN REMORSE, EVEN THOUGH ALLEN TRIED EVERYTHING PUTTING THE SENSE IN HIM TO MAKE HIM UNDERSTAND IT WAS WAY TO PREMATURE FOR RESIDENCE TO RETURN. HOWEVER, THIS IS THE SAME GUY THAT STARTS SCREAMING WHERE ALL THE RESCOURCES ARE, AT THE LAST MOMENT OF CALLING FOR THEM. A REAL LEADER. THEN GOVERNOR BLANCO, AS MUCH AS I DESPISE MY GOVENOR, I CAN ONLY HOPE IN AN EMERGENCY, HE WILL ONLY DO A JOB THAT IS NOT ANYTHING TO THE EFFECT OF THINKING SO MUCH OF MONEY AND DOWN PLAYING BACTERIA AND INVITING THE STATES PEOPLE BACKE INTO THE BACTERIA "MUCKY SOUP." PROVING TO BE A VERY SHALLOW MIND BEFORE AND AFTER A CATASTROPHE, AND THAT IS SPOKEN FOR BOTH THESE SO CALLED LEADERS,
THESE TWO PEOPLE SHOULD BE PULLED FROM OFFICE AND ALSO HELD ACCOUNTABLE FOR THE NON-ACTIONS OF WHAT THEY DID NOT DO AND WITH BLANCO'S STATEMENTS TRYING TO GET THE PEOPLE BACK IN WITH STATEMENTS IN WITH "IT'S JUST MUCKY WATER" AFTER SCIENTIST'S HAVE CONFIRMED THE LEVELS OF SUCH BIOLOGICAL CONTAMINANTS. SHE AND NEGAN ARE A DISPLAY OF A OUT OF CONTROL LEADER, THAT HAVE NO CLUE OR CONCERN FOR THE PEOPLE THEY ARE TO PROTECT. THEY ARE MORE CONCERNED FOR THE DAILY REVENUE THEY ARE LOOSING. REMINDS OF JAWS WHEN THE MAYOR WAS ADVISED TO EVACUATE AND REFUSED, EXCEPT THIS WAS REAL AND DEATHS OCCURRED AND SHE AND NEGAN HAD THE STRENGTH TO GET THE LEVIES REBUILT AND DID NOT WHICH IS MAINLY WHAT WIPED OUT OUR TAXPAYER'S MONEY NATIONWIDE LET ALONE THE LIVES THEY KILLED. COULD THIS HAVE BEEN AVOIDED, YOU TELL ME? WOULD THIS BE ADMITTED TO? YOU TELL ME? OR LET ME ANSWER, ABSOLUTELY NOT!
HAS THE GOVERNMENT FAILED THE AMERICAN PEOPLE? FOR GOD SAKES, LET'S GO TO AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL AND SPEAK WITH CHILDREN AND GET AN ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION, SINCE CHILDREN WILL NOT DISTORT THE TRUTH AND YOU CERTAINLY CAN'T GET ANY STRAIGHT ANSWERS THESE DAYS FROM THE POLITICIANS, AS OUR FOR FATHERS WOULD TURN OVER IN THEIR GRAVES IF THEY HAD A CLUE AS TO THE JOB THAT WAS BEING DONE BY THE ADMINISTRATION AND DEPARTMENTS.
WHAT DOES IT MEAN WHEN PRESIDENT BUSH COMMENDS MICHAEL BROWN (FEMA) AS HE SENDS HIM BACK TO WASHINGTON TO COUNT PAPERCLIPS? DOES HE THINK THAT LITTLE OF THE AMERICAN PEOPLE? WHY DIDN'T HE JUST ADMIT THE INCOMPETANCY THAT THE AMERICAN PEOPLE ALREADY NEW BROWN HAD, DID BUSH THINK OF HIS AMERICANS TO BE TOO DUMB TO SEE WHAT HE WOULD NOT ADMIT UNTIL DAYS LATER?
CHERTNOFF IS ANOTHER INDIVIDUAL THAT HAS NO BUSINESS TAKING THE AMERICAN PEOPLES MONEY AND TRYING TO GIVE US A SENSE OF SECURITY AS HE HAS DISPLAYED THE OBVIOUS READINESS HE WAS SUPPOSE TO BE RESPONSIBLE FOR AND FAILED DREADFULLY. THEREFORE SHOULD BE ASKED TO ALSO RESIGN. IS THERE NOT ANY ACCOUNTABILITY WHEN YOU HAVE OVER A 1000 LIVES DIE IN THREE STATES. WELL, IN CHERTNOFF'S MIND TWO STATES AND ONE CITY, COMPLETELY TURNED UPSIDE DOWN.
WE ALSO HAVE JUST EXPOSED HOW VULNERABLE NEW ORLEANS IS TO BEING FLOODED BY THE FAILUREOF THE LEVIE'S, SO WHY NOT REBUILD ORLEANS FIRST, DUMPING THE BILLIONS INTO THE REGION AND THEN HAVE A TERRORIST, NOW THAT THE EXPOSURE HAS BEEN MADE WORLDWIDE, COME IN AND BLAST AWAY. I REALLY HOPE I AM NOT THE ONLY ONE THAT HAS GIVEN THIS THE TYPE OF THOUGHT AS SUCH.
IT'S OBVIOUS NOBODY REALLY GAVE IT TOO MUCH THOUGHT WHEN IT CAME TO AN INCIDENT COMMAND SYSTEM, EVEN WHEN THERE WAS SUPPOSE TO BE SOME COMMAND STRUCTURE INVOLVED AFTER THERE WAS A COMMAND. I HAVE NEVER IN MY LIFE, SEEN ANYTHING SO PATHETICALLY RESPONDED TOO AND PUT TOGETHER IN A MANNER AS HAS A HURRICANE THAT SUPPOSEDLY HAD BEEN PREPARED FOR JUST THREE MONTHS PRIOR. THIS WAS 3-4 DAYS WARNING OF A CAT 4 HURRICANE AND THEN A 5.
I REALIZE DRILLS DEFINATELY DO NOT GO AS PLANNED. THIS IS SOMETHING WORSE THAN THAT, IT DEMONSTRATED THAT THERE WAS NO DRILLING EVEN DONE, WHEN THERE WAS A MULTI AGENCY DRILL DONE AND YOU WOULD HAVE NEVER KNOWN IT.
I GUESS FOR ME WHAT IS WORSE AS A TWENTY-YEAR COMMENDED FIREFIGHTER INJURED ON THE JOB FOR THE PAST 31 MONTHS WITH 2 COURT JUDGES ORDERS FOR MEDICAL TREATMENT, ONE BEING A YEAR AND A HALF OLD AND THE OTHER 6 MONTHS OLD, BOTH HAVE BEEN REFUSED. MAINLY BECAUSE GOVERNOR SHWARTZENEGGAR HAS DESTROYED OUR WORK COMP SYSTEM. MY FIRE DEPARTMENT AND CITY HAS BEEN ALLOWED TO CONTINUE TO REFUSE MEDICAL TREATMENT TO ME LEAVING ME IN PAIN AND UNTIL I GET THAT TREATMENT I CANNOT GET BACK TO WORK AND HELP THOSE I USED TO OR HAVE A NORMAL LIFE AS I HAD. THE TAXPAYER’S INSTEAD OF THE THIRD PARTY ADMINISTRATOR OF COURSE WILL PAY THE PENALTIES FOR DENYING AND DELAYING MY CARE. TYPICAL POLITICAL B.S. AND WHEN I WENT TO MY SENATOR'S OFFICE, SHE SAID THAT HE WILL BE FACED WITH A 13 TO 27 VOTE IF I TRY TO IMPLIMENT SOMETHING INTO OFFICE TO GET CONTROL OVER WHAT SWARTZANEGGER HAS DONE SINCE HE HAS EATEN UP BOTH MY LIFE AND MY SIGNIFICANT OTHER OFF NOW FOR 12 YEARS WITH HER COMP CASE. HIS REFORM IS CHASING OUT ALL THE ATTORNEYS OUT OF THE ARENA AND THE DOCTORS AND PRACTICALLY ANYONE HAVING ANYTHING TO DO WITH WORK COMP. NOW HOW DO YOU LIKE THAT FOR A TYPE OF REACTION FOR A BRUSH OFF. AGAIN, OUR FORFATHER'S WOULD ROLLOVER IN THEIR GRAVES FOR THOSE THAT ARE TOO LAZY AND DON'T CARE TO CHANGE ANYTHING FOR THE BETTER OF THE PEOPLE. NOTHING LIKE PUTTING YOUR LIFE ON THE LINE FOR THOSE YOU DO NOT KNOW AND IN RETURN, YOU FIND, NOBODY COULD CARELESS ABOUT A COMMENDED FIREMAN AND IT'S ALL TALK WHEN THEY SAY HOW MUCH THEY SAY THEY LOVE US WHEN WE RESPONDED TO 911, BRUSH FIRES, ORLEANS, ETC. IT’S ABSOLUTELT THE CHEAPEST TALK I HAVE EVER HEARD NEXT TO MY CHIEF TELLING ME, CALL MY BATTALION OFFICE IF YOU ARE HAVING PROBLEMS WITH MEDICAL TREATMENT AND I WILL GET YOU HELP! WHEN I NEEDED HIS HELP AND CALLED, THAT WAS WHEN WE SPOKE AND HE TOLD ME HE COULDN’T KELP ME AND HUNG UP ON ME AND IT WAS THE LAST TIME I HEARD FROM HIM.
BY THE WAY, I WON MY THIRD TRIAL LAST WEEK, HOWEVER, THEY ALSO CAN REFUSE TREATMENT ON THAT ORDER AS WELL AND THIS TIME SHOULD THEY DO SO, I BELIEVE AT THAT POINT IT WOULD BE A STORY THAT NEEDS TO GO TO 60 MINUTES OR PRIMETIME OR SOMETHING WITH BACKBONE. I DID NOT THINK IT WAS LEGAL TO DO WHAT MY DEPARTMENT IS DOING AND UNFORTUNATELY, MY GOVERNOR HAS PRODUCED A TOOTHLESS PITBULL. YOU JUST MAY HEAR A LITTLE MORE ABOUT LOS ANGELES AND THE CONTEMPT THEY PLAY WITH ORDERS TO A JUDGES ORDERS AND THE LIFE THEY HAVE RUINED FOR ALMOST THREE YEARS.
I AM IN HOPE THAT THIS MAY MAKE IT SOMEWHERE TO VENT SOME OF THE IDEAS THAT ARE SHARED BY NOT JUST ME ON THE ABOVE.
C.R.
craigrealley@hotmail.com
Thanks for printing the trans
Thanks for printing the transcript of the interview. I heard the entire interview and it was powerful. Did you notice that the President didn't let Mayor Nagin speak after their helicopter tour today.
Cypress St