Posted on 05/21/2006 6:05:46 PM PDT by Jean S
XXXXX DRUDGE REPORT XXXXX SUN MAY 21, 2006 20:00:02 ET XXXXX
DEMOCRATIC NATIONAL COMMITTEE WORKED TO DEFEAT NAGIN
**Exclusive**
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) secretly placed political operatives in the city of New Orleans to work against the reelection efforts of incumbent Democrat Mayor Ray Nagin, the DRUDGE REPORT has learned.
DNC Chairman Howard Dean made the decision himself to back mayoral candidate and sitting Lieutenant Governor Mitch Landrieu (D-LA), sources reveal.
Dean came to the decision to back the white challenger, over the African-American incumbent Nagin, despite concerns amongst senior black officials in the Party that the DNC should stay neutral.
The DNC teams actively worked to defeat Nagin under the auspice of the committee's voting rights program.
The party's field efforts also coincided with a national effort by Democrat contributors to support Landrieu.
Landrieu had outraised Nagin by a wide margin - $3.3 million to $541,980.
Preliminary campaign finance reports indicate many of Landrieus contributions came from out of state white Democrat leaders and financiers, including a $1,000 contribution from Sen. Ben Nelson's (D-NE) PAC.
The defeat of Mitch Landrieu is the latest setback for Dean's often criticized field operation.
In his victory speech late Saturday night, Nagin praised President Bush.
"You and I have probably been the most vilified politicians in the country. But I want to thank you for moving that promise that you made in Jackson Square forward," Nagin said.
Developing...
>>>I would like to know who leaked this info.
Well Mayor Nagin went out of his way to praise President Bush and comment the two of them were the most put upon. I would guess the news is leaked from the Mayor, he knew what was being done to him and stuck the knife back into Dean.
Peggy Wilson is the worst. She is everything I hate about the country club republican set. She's 70 years old, so I think we've seen the last of her.
Considering Couhig won the election for Ray and a lot of us followed his lead, I am pretty sure he'll be the leader of the New Orleans conservatives from here on out.
I don't know why you are so quick to doubt it...
Mary Landrieu said on national TV that she wanted to punch the President of the United States...she is a Senator that never tires of getting up on the Senate floor and telling American taxpayers that we OWE New Orleans to build it back and BETTER, after she and her family let it get "bad" to begin with.
HOW could you possibly doubt that this pushy woman would go to Howard Dean and tell him she wants her brother to be Mayor of New Orleans, by hook or by crook..????
Not only was Jefferson caught...but Nancy Pelosi is ready to dump him into and Ethics Committee investigation!!!
The woman that can't give an interview with using "culture of corruption" when discussin the White House and the Reps., is RUSHING to throw a dem to the Ethics Committee...
Oh, and he just happens to be black...hmmmm.
I'm moving from Plano, TX to Shreveport this Friday! Can't wait to get involved in LA politics. I'm tickled pink I'll be able to vote against Mary Landrieu
How hard will the DNC and the complicit MSM work to keep it from them? (and every one else, for that matter).
Yeah, I remember reading about a couple of Lyndon LaRouche delegates (from Ohio, I think) who won election as delegate to the Democratic National Convention. The Dem Natl Committee refused to seat them -- and the DNC attorneys actually argued that the Voting Rights Act didn't apply to the DNC -- being a private organization and all...
Don't you think that Nagin also knows that he will be heavily scrutinized over the next few years...so he is less likely, if he were inclined to any kind of corruption (which I am not saying he would)...he would NOT get away with it like the Landrieu tag team from Washington to NO, would?
And welcome to FR.
I have known Nagin for a long time. There is not one corrupt bone in his body. He may pander, he may be incompetent but he hates the Louisiana political machine as much as anyone else here. Louisiana style corruption is not in his DNA. So I don't think he needs any justification to stay clean.
He wants to get the federal aid in the hands of the people that need it. And I expect that will be done as soon as Blank-o realizes she won't be able to enrich her cronies with it.
Before the popularity of the internet, this could have been "swept under the rug" but now it is almost impossible to totally kill a story. Hopefully, enough enlightened computer users will get this out.
When considering the recovery of New Orleans, the history of Galveston, TX should be considered. Until September 8, 1900, Galveston was the major shipping and business center of Texas. If it was worth happening, it happened in Galveston. On Sept 8, a hurricane killed about 8000 people and destroyed much of Galveston. The Corps of Engineers built a sea wall and raised the island where Galveston was situated. It didn't help much. Galveston has been eclipsed by Houston, Dallas, etc. New Orleans may become nothing but a memory of what was.
What a screwup Howie is to not be able to defeat Raggin' Nagin, the butcher of New Orleans.
Did you know about Free Republic during the hurricane? The live threads have to be some of the best documentary evidence anywhere about real time happenings. It was obvious that Nagin had no power (no pun intended), and that Blanco/Landrieu and their advisors in Baton Rouge were no help to him. It was Nagin who really got President Bush to force Blanco to step aside enough to let troops in to get things moving.
It has already started.
Ray Nagin just gave a speech praising President Bush for coming through on his promises to supply relief for Hurricane Katrina and coming in ahead of schedule.
I have a feeling that this was a bit of a swipe at Howard Dean as much as praise for Bush.
Understand that to Howard Dean democrats, Nagin is a republican who changed his party affiliation to run for mayor.
Nagin was an executive for Cox Communications in New Orleans before his run for Mayor in 2002. He won with a lot of white support and very little support from the usual political machine. He is generally recognized as a maverick in New Orleans politics.
Let's hope that Nagin watches Washington politics very closely, then.
A lot of the money he thanked President Bush for is in the Supplemental Bill...which the Senate added about 10-12 BILLION dollars to, from what the President and the House put forward.
Pres. Bush has vowed to veto the bill if it comes in any higher than the one he put forward...and as much grief as he has taken over not vetoing any spending bill, he may just do it this time...
thus, that money for New Orleans will NOT show up. Of course, Bush will get the blame, not Congress.
You're probably right and I wouldn't be surprised to see Dean start getting a lot of flack from some Dems. I'd hate to see him run off though, I think he's an asset to us with some of the stunts he pulls.
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