[Dont_Tread_On_Me_888]

Tunehead54 has added point #8:

Well ... you can add this: On Friday before the hurricane President Bush sent a legal memo offering to consolidate all local, state and fed power to handle the storm effort ... Blanco declined. Things might have turned out very differently if the bus system had been used to get EVERYONE out.

Shortly before midnight Friday, the Bush administration sent her a proposed legal memorandum asking her to request a federal takeover of the evacuation of New Orleans, a source within the state's emergency operations center said Saturday.


MaryZ: Credit where credit is due! ;-)

[Tunehead54]

Oops - I think Cajungirl is correct - prolly was Friday 8/2/05. I know she hired Witt after the storm - his firm had a $500K contract with Wes Clarke and another to handle evacuation planning for NO in 2004. Sorry about #8. ;-(

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Bid for federal takeover

Behind the scenes, a power struggle emerged, as federal officials tried to wrest authority from Blanco. Shortly before midnight Friday, the Bush administration sent her a proposed legal memorandum asking her to request a federal takeover of the evacuation of New Orleans, according to a source within the state's emergency operations center.

The administration had sought control over National Guard units, normally under control of the governor. Louisiana officials rejected the request, noting that such a move would be comparable to a federal declaration of martial law.

Blanco made two moves Saturday that protected her independence from the federal government: She created a philanthropic fund for the state's victims and hired James Lee Witt, director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency in the Clinton administration, to advise her on the relief effort.