Politician caught in tearful lie (Broussard Crying on Meet the Press-Nursing Home Death)

WorldNetDaily ^ | September 15, 2005 | Staff

[Anti-Bubba182]

Thursday, September 15, 2005

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IN KATRINA'S WAKE
Politician caught in tearful lie
Parish prez fabricates claim about feds leaving coworker's mom to die

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Posted: September 15, 2005
2:06 p.m. Eastern

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© 2005 WorldNetDaily.com

The president of a Louisiana parish tearfully told a national TV audience the heartbreaking story of a coworker whose mother was left to die in a flooded nursing home days after Hurricane Katrina immobilized New Orleans – but, as it turns out, the story isn't true.

The blog WuzzaDem.com uncovered the truth-stretching rhetoric of Jefferson Parish President Aaron Broussard's account he shared on "Meet the Press" Sept. 4 as he emotionally complained about lack of federal response to Katrina victims.

Here is Broussard's story broadcast on the NBC news show:

The guy who runs this building I'm in, emergency management, he's responsible for everything. His mother was trapped in a St. Bernard nursing home and every day she called him and said, "Are you coming, son? Is somebody coming?" And he said, "Yeah, Mama, somebody's coming to get you. Somebody's coming to get you on Tuesday. Somebody's coming to get you on Wednesday. Somebody's coming to get you on Thursday. Somebody's coming to get you on Friday." And she drowned Friday night. She drowned Friday night.

The Friday night Broussard is talking about was Sept. 2, but it turns out the woman actually died Aug. 29, the previous Monday, when Katrina hit the Gulf Coast.

Aaron Broussard's tearful outburst.

MSNBC reported the man Broussard was talking about is Thomas Rodrigue, who told "Dateline" that his 92-year-old mother was one of 32 elderly people found dead at the St. Rita's nursing home. The New York Times reported the 32 residents, out of 60 total, died Aug. 29.

CNN reported Rodrigue, as he worked the hurricane watch Aug. 28, called the nursing home in St. Bernard to plead with the management to evacuate the residents. He also says he contacted St. Bernard Parish officials asking them to send sheriff's office personnel to the facility to evacuate his mother and the others – but to no avail. Over half the residents were killed Monday when Katrina came ashore.

Reported WuzzaDem.com: "Broussard claims Rodrigue was talking to his mother for four days after she died, promising here some nebulous 'cavalry' was on the way. His story doesn't jibe with the reporting of CNN, MSNBC, the New York Times, or even Thomas Rodrigue's own account.

"Why would he lie about such a thing?

"Aaron Broussard's crocodile tears came at the tail-end of a tirade against FEMA, in response to a question from [host] Tim Russert asking whether the mayor of New Orleans and the governor of Louisiana could have been 'more forceful, much more effective and much more organized in evacuating the area.'"

The site claims Broussard, a Democrat, was "trying to score political points" by blaming federal officials when Louisiana's emergency plan explicitly designates local officials as those responsible for pre-disaster evacuation and for responding directly after an event.

The website Lies.com also reported on Broussard's fabrication, saying, "Assuming the MSNBC story is accurate, Broussard’s story was at least significantly embellished. ... Broussard, for all the apparent sincerity in his emotional on-air breakdown, was willing to lie in order to make his story work better as political theater."

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[JBGUSA]

People will do anything to make Bush look bad, even lie. I carry no flag for Bush, but last I checked he did not cause or even advocate the hurricane.

[MOgirl]

Hello,

My MIL, who is 72, completely lost lost it over this man's tearful and (apparently) untrue story of an old woman left for days, waiting for help until she died. Now, my MIL, is one of the most intelligent and down to earth people you will ever find, but after the emotions of the entire week, this pushed her over the edge. I think that at her age, she was able to put herself in such a position, completely helpless and at the mercy of others.

If this is true, if this man lied to cover for himself and others, I would ask God to consider his permanent home after this life. What a bastard, what a low life excuse for a human being.

Glad to be here, MOgirl

[nopardons]

bttt

[nopardons]

I hope he's thrown into jail, for a very long time!

[Mo1]

http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/frontpage/index.ssf?/base/news-4/1124866288219740.xml


Green's wrinkled robe now gone
He resigns from his state judgeship
Wednesday, August 24, 2005
By Michelle Krupa
West Bank bureau
Alan Green, who was convicted of mail fraud in June for his handling of political contributions from Bail Bonds Unlimited, has resigned his state judgeship, becoming the second Jefferson Parish judge forced from office by the federal Operation Wrinkled Robe investigation.

Green, who had been collecting his $290-a-day salary since the June 29 verdict, quit after U.S. District Judge Lance Africk accepted a plea deal last week in which Green agreed not to appeal his conviction if prosecutors pledged not to retry him on the six charges on which the jury could not reach unanimous decisions.

"Our agreement is finalized," said Green's attorney, Frank DeSalvo. "It's just a matter of finishing . . . the sentencing. I think that (resigning) was just the right thing to do at this time."

Green's resignation, which became effective Monday, sets off a race for the Division C seat on the 24th Judicial District Court, which Green had held since its creation in 1992 as a black-majority district. Division C stretches from Marrero to Waggaman and includes parts of south Kenner.

Gov. Kathleen Blanco is expected in coming days to call an election to fill the remainder of Green's term, which expires Dec. 31, 2008, said a spokeswoman for Secretary of State Al Alter, who received Green's official resignation. Meanwhile, the Louisiana Supreme Court will appoint an interim judge, the spokeswoman said.

Green voluntarily stepped down from the bench in October, but continued collecting his $105,780 salary until resolution of a seven-count indictment that accused him of taking $20,000 in cash, golf fees, meals and other things of value from Bail Bonds Unlimited in return for manipulating bonds to help the company.

Green, who could go to federal prison for 20 years, didn't want to vacate the post until Africk signed off on the plea agreement, DeSalvo said, adding that his client would have appealed the single conviction and fought any new charges by prosecutors if the deal had been rejected.

U.S. Attorney Jim Letten said Green's decision to step down was the right one based on the jury verdict.

"His conviction was extremely important to the citizens and to the integrity of the 24th Judicial District Court," Letten said. "Certainly, his resignation pursuant to that conviction was not only appropriate but necessary to the restoration of that integrity."

The resignation renders moot a recommendation this month to the state Supreme Court to remove Green from office in light of his conviction, according to a court filing Tuesday by the Judiciary Commission. The commission accused Green of violating judicial canons and engaging in "persistent and public conduct . . . that brings the judicial office into disrepute."

Metropolitan Crime Commission President Rafael Goyeneche gave Green credit for resigning before his likely ouster by the Supreme Court, but he said the judge should have been required to step down immediately after the guilty verdict.

"I think that (it should be) part of Louisiana law that any public official, including members of the judiciary, who is convicted of a felony connected with his office should forfeit his position immediately," Goyeneche said. "Public service is a privilege, not a right."

Set to be sentenced Oct. 14, Green is the 14th defendant snared in the ongoing, 6½-year Gretna courthouse probe. Ronald Bodenheimer, whose judgeship expired Dec. 31, 2002, resigned four months before he admitted to crimes uncovered by the investigation. He is serving a 46-month prison sentence.

Jurors convicted Green, a Democrat from Marrero, of mail fraud for mailing two checks in August 2002 to Bail Bonds Unlimited as a refund for two $5,000 cash payments he had received from a company employee.

Green testified the payments were campaign contributions; Lori Marcotte, the company's vice president, testified they were bribes to get Green to manipulate bonds for criminal suspects in a manner favoring her company.

Jurors could not settle on six other charges against Green, including racketeering and conspiracy.

[lormand]

Louisiana DemocRATS (I used to be one) are used to getting away with anything they want. It is a one party state, and unless the national spotlite is shined on it, they will continue to get away with corruption.

[nopardons]

Rigged jury or just a bunch of complete morons ?

[Mo1]

http://www.nola.com/news/t-p/grace/index.ssf?/base/news-0/1124606207174010.xml
(snip)
On top of the 24th Judicial District Court jurists who have already been convicted, Ronald Bodenheimer and Alan Green, it now turns out that the FBI and U.S. Attorney's office are looking at the activities of still more jurists.

At least two judges, Kernan "Skip" Hand of the 24th Judicial District Court and Susan Chehardy of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeal, along with Justice of the Peace Steve Mortillaro, have recently received grand jury subpoenas. For good measure, Hand's high-profile campaign chair and treasurer, Parish President Aaron Broussard and attorney David Sherman, were also served.

One clear message from the new round of subpoenas is that, instead of winding down, Wrinkled Robe is entering a new, perhaps even more active, phase.

Another is that the investigators and government prosecutors who came up with the catchy code name may have been too generous.

If suspected illegalities in Gretna are that widespread, it's clear that a simple figurative pressing won't do the trick. Perhaps they should go with something like Tattered and Torn Robe? Or, to stick with their penchant for alliteration, maybe Jaded Justice, or Corrupted Courthouse?

Anyone for Sordid System?

It really is starting to feel that way.

Bodenheimer pleaded guilty to conspiring to plant drugs on a critic of his Venetian Isles marina, plotting to fix Copeland's child custody case, and manipulating bonds in favor of Bail Bonds Unlimited, the same company whose cozy relationship with Green was at the heart of his conviction.

And Bail Bonds Unlimited appears to be central to the probe of other judges being eyed by the feds.

Hand, Broussard, Sherman, Chehardy and Mortillaro were asked to produce records concerning donations and gifts from the bond firm and its owners or employees. The names of Chehardy and 24th Judicial District Court Judge Joan Benge, along with Bodenheimer and Green, also appeared in a 2002 subpoena of the bail bonds firm that sought information about cash and favors that the firm had given public officials.

Even if there are no more indictments, its worth remembering how many public officials accepted Bail Bonds Unlimited's unseemly largesse. The firm paid for a 2000 chartered cruise for Bodenheimer, Green and Judge Roy Cascio of 2nd Parish Court. Judges also ate, fished, and golfed on the firm's tab so regularly that Green attempted to use the old "everybody-does-it" defense.

"It's not unusual in Jefferson Parish. It's not unusual through the entire New Orleans area," he said on the witness stand.

Green wasn't allowed to go into detail about his colleagues' behavior during the trial, but he could well be telling the feds about it now, as his sentencing awaits. Another possible explanation for their newfound interest is that Norman Bowley, a Bail Bonds executive who pleaded out shortly before Green's trial started, is now cooperating. Bowley joins his former boss Louis Marcotte and Marcotte's sister Lori, the Green case star witness, on the government's side.

Nobody over at the 24th Judicial District Court is likely to be happy about the latest developments -- including the judges whose integrity has not been questioned, but who are eager to start the healing.

It looks like their wait just got a whole lot longer.

[Luv2FrazzleDems]

I second that. It infuriates me to know that he and others could lie about such a thing for any reason, much less political or personal reasons. The damage has been done and the MSM will wait until Hurricane Katrina is merely a blip on their radar before issuing a correction/statement.

This man deserves all the punishment coming to him. I feel humilated for buying into his story and sobbing on my sofa.

[mom-7]

Been a lot of lying about things that happened in this storm.

[Anti-Bubba182]

He deserves to be exposed for playing the emotions of the viewers falsely.

[Peach]

Thanks for that info; sending to someone in my e-mail list.

[Presby Conservative]

Freepers, it is always a good idea to copy this WND story to an email and send it to all of your friends. More people will read about this lie in that manner, than they will ever hear it on TV----even if Meet the Press were to retract.

[MOgirl]

Hello,

I do understand that his acting was impressive, because my MIL bought it hook, line and sinker. What we all need to keep in mind is that many people are not buying this, not going along with the the Old Media in blaming Bush.

However, if my MIL's reaction is typical of seniors, the next few elections could be interesting. (Not that my MIL would ever vote for a Dem, she wouldn't. But, this entire situation pointed out that those that are not able (for whatever reason) to care for themselves, can be left to die. To the elderly, this is big, this is personal. What has to be brought home to them is that their own local and state governments are responsible first, the Feds will come later.)

Glad to be here, MOgirl

[jw777]

a lying democrat is hardly news, although i sniffed this guy out immediately. admittadly, i am not the best judge of character based on a tv program, but it just wreaked to me of Jimmy Swaggart and I am glad someone found this guy out.

[greccogirl]

My only question is: WHY DIDN'T HE GET HIS OWN MOTHER? If it were MY MOM,I'm dang sure she'd have been out of there!

[R. Scott]

So when is Diane Sawyer going to bust this guy?

[Anti-Bubba182]

Below is a transcript of Tom Rodrigue, the lady's son, trying to get her evacuated. There were people at the nursing home leading up to the arival of Katrina.

CNN’s Newsnight program RODRIGUE

".. (BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

SUSAN CANDIOTTI, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Tom Rodrigue is living a nightmare. He knew his 92-year-old mother, Eva, was in deep trouble. And he was helpless to get her out of harm's way.

TOM RODRIGUE, VICTIM'S SON: We've had numerous storms before, and they know that, if they evacuate, she needs to go with them.

CANDIOTTI: His mother, Eva Rodrigue lived, and apparently died, with more than 30 others in St. Rita's Nursing Home, which was flooded after Katrina swept into New Orleans. Some were evacuated, but many were not moved to safety in time and drowned.

RODRIGUE: She didn't have Alzheimer's. She knew who people was. She remembered things. And she could still get around on a walker. So she wasn't an invalid, you know? So she could move around.

CANDIOTTI: Tom Rodrigue, himself a former emergency management director for Louisiana's National Guard, was out of town when Katrina turned toward New Orleans. He started calling the nursing home Saturday, urging that it be evacuated.

RODRIGUE: You know, they indicated they were not going to leave. CANDIOTTI: Sunday night, as Katrina struck, Rodrigue was 30 miles away directing emergency personnel for Jefferson Parish. He called the nursing home in St. Bernard Parish again, pleading with officials to get the residents out. He was told they were going to try.

RODRIGUE: I called the St. Bernard officials again and, you know, told them that, you know, they've got to get, you know, these people out. And they said they notified them, and that they weren't -- they refused to leave. And I said, "Well, you need to send the sheriff's office down there and make them leave." And he said, "I'm doing everything I can."

CANDIOTTI: On Wednesday, 10 days after Katrina struck, authorities began removing bodies from St. Rita's Nursing Home. Eva Rodrigue's remains have not yet been found.

CNN has been so far unable to reach the nursing home owners to find out whether they had an evacuation plan and if the workers did all they could to clear the place out. CNN reviewed St. Rita's records on the state's web site. It indicates the home's license expired last July, but we couldn't reach state authorities to confirm that.

For Tom Rodrigue, the pain is overwhelming.

RODRIGUE: She may not have been able to withstand the ordeal, even if they would have rescued her. But she deserved the chance, you know, to be rescued, instead of having to drown like a rat.

CANDIOTTI: Susan Candiotti, CNN, New Orleans.

(END VIDEOTAPE) .."

[greccogirl]

So why didn't he get her? Unable to help? He was 30 miles away, he doesn't have a driver's license?

[WasDougsLamb]

I cried too. I thought he was being honest. What a jerk he is.