Katrina Coverage

Sharply accessoried with bright blue umbrellas - the same color as the tarps that were installed by a partially-illegal workforce indirectly receiving federal money - 140 New Orleans women calling themselves the "Women of the Storm" visited Capitol Hill on Monday. They were inviting Congress members to visit their city and requesting more money for […]

As of mid-November, the number of recoveries had dwindled to a one or two a week, and Kenyon International Emergency Services' contract to do collections ended around that time.
The backstory is in this story from 11/16:
Kenyon… first arrived in the storm-ravaged region Sept. 7 as a short-term contractor for the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Six […]

The LAT offers "Image Problem Is Costing Louisiana" about how not too many DC politicians want to go out of their way for LA because of LA's reputation and because of Sen. Mary Landrieu's "in-your-face approach":
After battling in Congress for months to get more federal money for their hurricane-ravaged state, some Louisiana officials have come […]

Sen. Ted Stevens (R-AK) visited New Orleans on Sunday and toured the area together with Sens. David Vitter (R-LA) and Craig Thomas (R-WY), stopping in at a Lakeview home where he got into a candid chat with the homeowners:
"He said, 'Why would we want to rebuild these homes in an area below sea level?' and […]

From this:
…on Nine News Thursday morning, the former advisor to former president Bill Clinton named names.
Dick Morris says over the last few years, Washington funded hundreds of millions of dollars to strengthen the levee system, but some of our senators spent it on something else.
Dick Morris: "The congress and the White House voted 750 million […]

From this:
The struggle was never more evident than last week when Gov. Kathleen Blanco, Lt. Gov. Mitch Landrieu and New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin appeared before congressional committees asking for help to rebuild after Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, in a series of speeches that each included a defense of the state.
With several members of Congress […]

Landrieu says illegal workers hurt La.
Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., is asking the Bush administration to send immigration enforcement officers to the Gulf Coast to investigate whether federal contractors are hiring undocumented workers to do Katrina recovery work.
"While my state experiences unemployment rates not seen since the Great Depression, it is unconscionable that illegal workers would […]

Bear in mind we aren't just talking about alleged illegal aliens taking jobs that should go to those Americans affected by the storm. We're also talking about them working on a U.S. Navy base, so there's that little extra kick in the teeth.
Dateline Alabama
Immigration agents detained a large number of illegal immigrants working for a […]

Mary Landrieu: It's Never Enough has all the facts and figures on how much Louisiana gets from the federal government:
…As illustrated by the nonpartisan Tax Foundation, federal income taxes collected from residents and businesses in Louisiana have only increased by 11 percent in the period from 1997 through 2003. Yet, at the same time, federal […]

The LAT article "Lobbyists Shape Gulf Coast Rebuilding" has more on just how much say corporations got in Louisiana's rebuilding plan. Bear in mind, that article is about the state's plan, the one they want $250 billion for. See "Louisiana wants $40 billion; stuffed with pork" for previous coverage.
From the LAT:
…"I was basically shocked," said […]