This is a good article, and shows that the blame for this is widespread and goes back many years, involving both local and federal agencies. It may be quite true that the Bush admin was not sufficiently proactive on this issue, but it appears that no one else was, either.
Here's the bottom line:
"It's been 36 years since Hurricane Betsy buried New Orleans 8 feet deep. Since then a deteriorating ecosystem and increased development have left the city in an ever more precarious position."
"Yet the problem went unaddressed for decades by a laissez-faire government, experts said.
"...A plan to restore the Florida Everglades attracted $4 billion in federal funding, but the state had to match it dollar for dollar.
In Louisiana, so far, there's only been a willingness to match 15 or 25 cents. "Our state still looks for a 100 percent federal bailout, but that's just not going to happen," said University of New Orleans geologist Shea Penland, a delta expert.
"We have an image and credibility problem. We have to convince our country that they need to take us seriously, that they can trust us to do a science-based restoration program."