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

---

---

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

---

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

---

© 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."

---

[Texas Jack]

Before retiring recently, I worked for a large retail electronics store. Large, by the fact that the store encompassed 180,000 sq ft.

On a daily basis, small children would get lost from their parents and we would have to take them in hand, reassure them that everything was going to be okay, give them some candy to stop their crying, and page their parents.

It's easy to understand how small children could become lost in such a situation. They couldn't see over the rows of seven foot tall shelves, their legs weren't long enough to keep up with their parents who were rushing to get to the next $10 off special on a hard drive, and they had limited verbal skills to explain what was happening to them.

Their self-preservation mechanism kicked in so they stopped in their tracks and cried as loudly as they could, indicating to adults that they needed help.

Isn't that what we have here; a bunch of people acting like children and complaining because the adults didn't get there soon enough.

Mr. Broussard why didn't you go save the person you cried about? Oh, that's right, she was already dead and you knew it.

Mayor Nagin, "...I don't know whose problem this is."

Senator Landrieu, "...I'm going to hit you if you get close to me..."

Governor Blanco, mumbling incoherently when asked the simplest of questions.

All of the dems crying like the children that they are, incapable of actually taking care of themselves and their constituents, waiting for an adult to give them some candy and pull them out of their trouble.

Isn't that what GW did last night, promise them candy? After all, it takes an adult to be able to see of the tall shelves.

[ncountylee]

Jefferson Parish web site has email blocked. Tried to send a msg. to this puke.

[ricoshea]

I cannot understand the hubris of the MSM in this day and age still trying to put one over on the people.Do they not understand there is the Internet.Did they forget Rathergate?

[putupjob]

This was the most effective and heart wrenching smear mounted against President Bush.

When I first heard the story I couldn't understand how the water was rising at the old woman's house from Monday TO FRIDAY, when it crested on Wednesday everywheres else.

[Anti-Bubba182]

I think it was too. They played it for all it was worth, but
did not do anything about it when they kne it had to be bogus.
Only bloggers and World Net Daily picked it up.

[Anti-Bubba182]

The story finally shows up on MSM. I am surprised, but I guess they thought they had to deal with it. The story mentions the questions raised by bloggers, but spins Broussard's comments as a misunderstanding. Broussard has not yet been contacted on this. I don't know what he will say, but I bet it will be a good yarn. I look for something sentimental with a dash of righteous indignation.

An emotional moment and a misunderstanding (Jefferson Parish Prez lied about death of a mother)

[George Smiley]

My wife works for a company that has contacts with many nursing homes, some of which are in the area affected by Katrina.

Naturally this issue is the subject of much discussion at the office; in addition to the deaths of those who were left in situ, it appears that hundreds died on buses while being evacuated.