Top Items:
Lara Jakes Jordan / Associated Press:
Embattled Brown Relieved of Katrina Duty — WASHINGTON - Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Michael Brown, the principal target of harsh criticism of the Bush administration's response to Hurricane Katrina, was relieved of his onsite command Friday.
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MSNBC:
FEMA chief relieved of Katrina duties — Move follows controversy over Brown's qualifications, agency's response — WASHINGTON - Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Michael Brown is being removed from his role managing Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, government sources said Friday.
Knight Ridder:
Brown is merely a symbol of the problems at FEMA, experts say — WASHINGTON - Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Michael Brown, who on Friday was sent back to Washington, is the poster boy for what's gone wrong with an agency once lauded for its lightning reflexes.
Washington Post:
Head of Federal Katrina Relief Effort Replaced — Death Toll May Not Be as High as Originally Feared — Authorities in New Orleans today wrapped up a search for survivors of Hurricane Katrina and launched a concerted operation to recover the bodies of people who perished in the flooding caused …
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CNN:
Coast Guard admiral to lead relief effort — Beleaguered FEMA chief Michael Brown sent home — BATON ROUGE, Louisiana (CNN) — Federal Emergency Management Agency chief Michael Brown was replaced Friday as the man in charge of the Hurricane Katrina federal relief effort.
Shaun Waterman / Washington Times:
Cops trapped survivors in New Orleans — Police from surrounding jurisdictions shut down several access points to one of the only ways out of New Orleans last week, effectively trapping victims of Hurricane Katrina in the flooded and devastated city. — An eyewitness account …
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San Francisco Chronicle:
Police made their storm misery worse — Larry Bradshaw and Lorrie Beth Slonsky, two San Francisco paramedics trapped in New Orleans for five days last week, have a different story to tell than many of the tales that have come out in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Rod Dreher / The Corner on National Review Online:
THE COST OF CRONYISM — It would be very wrong, I believe, to let the ignominious Michael Brown be the scapegoat for FEMA's sins. Check out this front-pager from the WaPo. Turns out that a raft of FEMA's top leaders have little or no emergency management experience …
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Jerry Markon / Washington Post:
Court Rules U.S. Can Indefinitely Detain Citizens — Ruling Comes in the Case of 'Enemy Combatant' Jose Padilla — A federal appeals court ruled today that the president can indefinitely detain a U.S. citizen captured on U.S. soil in the absence of criminal charges, holding that such authority …
Discussion:
Patridiot Watch, ACSBlog, Booman Tribune ~ Boo!, The Liquid List, Democratic Veteran and The Agonist
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Associated Press:
Gay advocates plan to post names of anti-gay marriage petition signers — BOSTON —Two gay activists are promising to post on the Internet the names and addresses of anyone who signs a petition that could lead to a statewide ban on gay marriage. — The move by Thomas Lang and Alexander Westerhoff …
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La Shawn / La Shawn Barber's Corner:Two 'Tolerant' Homosexuals Try to Intimidate
Discussion:
Wizbang
Dwight / DomeBlog:
DeLay to evacuees: 'Is this kind of fun?' — U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay's visit to Reliant Park this morning offered him a glimpse of what it's like to be living in shelter. — While on the tour with top administration officials from Washington, including U.S. Secretary …
Discussion:
AMERICAblog
Tung Yin / The Yin Blog:
Law profs opposed to John Roberts: show, don't tell — The letter signed by 160 law profs that urges the Senate to reject John Roberts as Chief Justice is here. I'm interested what people think the letter is really designed to achieve. It strikes me that the letter is a perfect example …
The Liberal Avenger:
FREEDOM WALK DOG TAGS — The liberal blogosphere will be well represented at this weekend's Freedom Walk in Washington, DC in the form of the Reverend Mykeru. — Mykeru shared the excitement of his walker's gift package with me... The highlight? A set of cheap stamped metal toy dog tags...
Erwin Seba / Reuters:
Texas groups linked to DeLay indicted in scandal — HOUSTON (Reuters) - A Texas grand jury has indicted a political action committee formed by U.S. House Majority Leader Tom DeLay as well as a powerful business group on charges they violated the state's campaign finance laws, officials said on Thursday.
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April Castro / Associated Press:DeLay Organization Indicted in Texas
Discussion:
Shakespeare's Sister
Associated Press:
Iraq hurt Katrina response, general says — Pentagon says it can handle both the disaster and Iraq war — BAY ST. LOUIS, Mississippi (AP) — The deployment of thousands of National Guard troops from Mississippi and Louisiana in Iraq when Hurricane Katrina struck hindered …
Hindrocket / Power Line:
DISMAL POLL NUMBERS — Republicans have taken some comfort from the poll numbers that have come out so far on Hurricane Katrina, which have suggested that most Americans aren't buying the Democrats' unfair attacks. — Think again. The AP/Ipsos poll numbers that came out today, and can be accessed here, are horrible.
Dave Astor / Editor and Publisher:
Conservative Pundits Reluctant to Criticize Bush's Katrina Response — NEW YORK The Bush administration has received a torrent of bi-partisan criticism for its initial response to Hurricane Katrina. But most conservative columnists have continued to go fairly easy on George W. Bush during the past week, according to an E&P survey.
Discussion:
mediabistro
Will Wilkinson / Tech Central Station:
Storms of Stupidity on the Op-Ed Pages — The tragedy and travesty of Katrina and New Orleans has three basic parts: (1) very, very bad weather hitting a perilously situated city; (2) government failure at the local, state, and federal level; (3) the poverty of New Orleans, ensuring a large population unable to leave town.
Discussion:
Hit and Run