OFFER REJECTED

Other than my recent post on Michael Moore's open letter to the President, I haven't had much to say about the Katrina fiasco. That's because the situation was very confused. Things are now becoming clear.

New Orleans mayor C. Ray Nagin recalls last Friday's meeting with the President:

"And he said, 'Mr. Mayor, I offered two options to the governor.' I was ready to move. The governor said she needed 24 hours to make a decision."

That decision was a request by Mr. Bush to allow the federal government to take over the evacuation of New Orleans, which had been marked by chaos for days. The Democratic governor, who has clashed behind the scenes with the Bush administration since the storm hit, refused.

Unfortunately, governor Blanco appears to have been the wrong person, at the wrong place, at the wrong time.