The Louisiana state government and New Orleans city government are culpable in the response problems. It appears they did very little but tell people to "get out." They did not provide any support for those who were clearly unable to get out. They should have had buses at the Superdome before the storm hit and started moving the infirm and the poor to safety.
Hurricanes are not a novelty to the Gulf states. Each state is supposed to have its own emergency response plan for situations just like this. We have always known that a Category 4 or 5 was a distinct possibility and that such a storm would be disastrous, particularly if it hit a major city.
I'm not surprised that the liberal whiners are pointing their fingers at Bush, but they ought to be looking more closely at what the local government in Louisiana did NOT do prior to the storm's landfall. They had ample time to do a better job in preparing than they did.
I agree with every one of your rational facts. The primary responsibility was with the state/local governments and they failed. My only point is they failed so abjectly that it was obvious at least to not just this casual observer Tuesday and something should have been done faster (like Tuesday PM) than it was at the federal level to correct that. It's as simple and as complicated as that. No one is clean here but to assert that Bush acted with all the speed he should have mustered in not something I can agree with and I have the right to say so without being called ignorant or stupid or silly. I happen to have been a conservative Republican that has worked/hoped/prayed for a chance to change the direction of this country for a long time. No Liberal whining here. I lived many years on the Gulf Coast and some (more than a few) of them in New Orleans next to a levee so I do know a little about the matter of Hurricanes and how they should be prepared for. Anyway, this debate will not go away no matter how bad the BushBots want it to.