TOTAL INFORMATION ANALYSIS

Thursday, September 15, 2005

UPDATE Sept. 15: New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin participated in a press conference from Baton Rouge today with other local officals and the president of the U.S. Conference of Mayors. During the conference, broadcast live on wwltv.com, Nagin remarked in response to a question, "I'm in trouble with the CIA as it is."

(Total411.info) 8:10 pm CDT Sept. 3 -- In an interview by WWL-TV, broadcast on Louisiana Public Broadcasting and webcast on wwltv.com, New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin made a startling statement alluding to death threats from shadowy intelligence agents.

After repeating the day's White House talking point that everything has "turned the corner" and detaling some of the aid operations, the WWL reporter asked Nagin if he thought his "extraordinary language" helped in getting the aid there. (Nagin, on radio, told the feds to "get your asses down here" as people lay dying.)

Nagin replied in a shakily joking tone, "Yeah, I'm a little bit concerned about that. You see any CIA agents around here? Tell 'em to go the other way, man."

Here's WWLTV.com's characterization of the interview from their Katrina blog:

"6:40 P.M. - New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin: We're starting to see a turnaround for the better in town. When asked if his angry comments perhaps hastened the federal government's response, Nagin said he could not take all the credit. "The nation demanded a response" and the government responded, he said.

"Nagin advised those who had fled or evacuated the city that they should not return for some time. He said there is a long checklist city officials must go through before declaring the city open to the public, among them: draining the city, cleaning out debris and other waste, removing dead bodies, and decontaminating the city for disease potential.

"The Mayor said that history will judge whether or not he could have done more to save Orleans residents."

Nagin actually said in response to a question that history would judge the actions of all concerned, including President Bush.

It is also imortant to note that Nagin confirmed that national outrage spurred the feds to action. This is still a crisis situation and pressure from the public must be kept on high as this unfolds.

| Posted at 23:59 | PERMA-LINK |

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