Katrina Coverage

According to a new poll, only 5% are pleased with the way the rebuilding is going. 26% are "satisfied, but not pleased". 43% are "dissatisfied, but not angry".
And, in the smartie category, 16% are angry.
Their opinion of Bush's handling of the crisis has fallen from 44% in September to just 32%.
Only 15% think Bush has […]

The Brookings Institute has an ongoing series that sounds more impressive than it turns out to be. However, here it is.

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 […]

Some details in "New Orleans Residents Show Anger at Forum". The "blueprints" are in the 34 Meg PowerPoint file available here. Basically, there would be a moratorium on building permits. And, residents would have to prove that their specific neighborhood could come back. If they couldn't do that, the neighborhood would be razed and the […]

WASHINGTON (AP) - Overwhelming Senate passage of a bill bearing $29 billion to help rebuild after Hurricane Katrina has put the massive aid package a step away from being sent to President Bush for his signature.
Nearly four months after the maelstrom devastated New Orleans and much of the nearby Gulf Coast, the House was expected […]

According to an NYT editorial, we need to spend $32 billion or so - spread over several years - to improve the levees to Category 5 level. Why, that's just a third of the recent tax cuts! And, while president Bush is largely to blame, local officials must do their part as well:
We are about […]

Leftie icon Paul Krugman offers this (also partially here):
[…comparison with Iraq rebuilding…]
…One FEMA program has, however, been revamped. The Recovery Channel is a satellite and Internet network that used to provide practical information to disaster victims. Now it features public relations segments telling viewers what a great job FEMA and the Bush administration are doing.
But […]

Brendan Murray of Bloomberg takes our leader to task for forgetting about his recent promises:
Just three months ago, President George W. Bush couldn't talk enough about the hurricane-ravaged Gulf Coast and the effort to rebuild it.
Bush traveled to the region eight times in the six weeks following Hurricane Katrina's Aug. 29 landfall. He spoke about […]

You can download several PDFs here listing various rebuilding contracts awarded by the Army Corps of Engineers, FEMA, and dear old DoD. They also have tips on how to pay for all that reconstruction.

I think there's a bit more to this story than is given in City Park to squatters: Pay rent:
Officials say Katrina cleanup workers have to start paying for the space their tents and R-Vs are using in City Park, and those who don't pay by Friday will be treated as trespassers.
Pink fliers announcing the plan […]