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Decade after fleeing New Orleans, Chattanooga residents reflect on storm that altered the paths of their lives forever
Sorry seems to be the hardest word
Liberal Democratic operative Donna Brazile and liberal journalist Walter Isaacson admitted last week what many conservatives have known all along - that President George W. Bush's response to Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans in 2005 was the right one.
On the 10th anniversary of the devastating hurricane, the two New Orleans natives, while on Air Force One en route to New Orleans with President Obama, agreed the former president was correct in his response.
Bush, not wanting to supersede the slow-moving local and state authorities, waited before involving the federal government and received heavy criticism for it.
"I'm one of those individuals that believes that under President Bush's leadership, we got it right," Brazile said. "It was slow. Remember, the state and local government was overwhelmed. The federal government had to step in. The federal government had to figure out its role.
"It took a while for the federal government to really figure out how to help us, and I think once the president made the decision that New Orleans would be rebuilt, despite some of the conversation on Capitol Hill that didn't believe that the federal government should invest hundreds of billions of dollars into the recovery effort, the president made a commitment and I think he kept his word."
Brazile, who ran Al Gore's 2000 presidential campaign, also praised former first lady Laura Bush for her commitment to help rebuild the city's libraries.
His bias not in doubt
Among the many misdeeds that got eventual double murderer Vester Flanagan fired from WDBJ in Roanoke, Va., was his decision to wear an Obama sticker while recording an on-air segment at a polling place during the 2012 presidential election.
Flanagan, who gunned down reporter Alison Parker and cameraman Adam Ward during a live segment last week, was censured for the action involving the sticker.
Then-news director Dan Dennison, in a memo, told Flanagan his action was a clear violation of journalistic ethics and company rules that ban employees from participating in partisan politics.
"Journalists and particularly reporters who appear on television must abide by a different standard," he said. "This demonstrated a basic lack of understanding of your role as an on-air journalist at the television station and poor judgment."
Dennison went on to say Flanagan's days at the station could be numbered if he continued to do the same kind of things that already had landed him in hot water.
"Your disciplinary actions and performance deficits are well documented," the memo said. "While the management team is committed to helping you improve your daily work product and your overall success, we are fast reaching the point where continued violations of company policy or basic journalistic standards could mean termination from employment at WDBJ7."
In one word
How would you describe yourself in one word?
A Quinnipiac poll recently asked respondents: "What is the first word that comes to mind when you think of Hillary Clinton?"
The list is not good news for the Democratic presidential front-runner. And the survey, unlike most, did not oversample Democrats to get its answer. The responses came from 1,563 registered voters, including 666 Republicans and 647 Democrats.
The top 10 words: 1. liar, 2. dishonest, 3. untrustworthy, 4. experience, 5. strong, 6. Bill, 7. woman, 8. smart, 9. crook and 10. untruthful. Among the next 10 were criminal, deceitful, email, Benghazi, corrupt and crooked.
So, 11 of the first 20 were highly negative, and Bill might be taken either way.
Only time will tell whether the former first lady can turn around this image.
He misremembered
Former NBC News anchor Brian Williams hasn't surfaced yet on MSNBC, but a New York Post report says MSNBC scaled back its coverage of the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina last week because then-hurricane ravaged New Orleans was the site of one of Williams' incorrectly remembered incidents.
Williams, reporting from the hurricane scene in 2005, said he had seen a dead body float past his hotel while he was there. He also said the hotel where he was staying had been "overrun" with gangs, was insecure and that he had gotten dysentery. Later, when Williams was suspended by NBC when it became apparent he stretched the truth in some of his reports, the hotel manager during Hurricane Katrina was shocked to hear his reminiscence because she said the hotel had extra security, medicine and medical help. She said she had been given an award for how she handled the situation.
"MSNBC is sensitive about Brian Williams and his reporting on Katrina," the Post said it had been told by an MSNBC insider. "None of their anchors are there this weekend. Brian's mid-September start date was carefully scheduled to avoid the Katrina anniversary, among other considerations."