The Minneapolis Star Tribune is reporting this morning that George W. Bush's plans to attend the Republican National Convention in St. Paul as scheduled on Monday have been put on hold.
Bush, who is scheduled to deliver a speech to the delegates on Monday, is monitoring the progress of Hurricane Gustav in the Gulf of Mexico.
I hope he has thoughts of the Hurricane Katrina experience on his mind — and I particularly hope he has FEMA ready to respond immediately to a crisis.
(That would be appropriate — not only as a way to compensate for FEMA's abysmal record after Hurricane Katrina but also because, ironically, Monday night's theme at the Republican convention happens to be "Country First: Service." This would be a good time for the Republicans to demonstrate their commitment to service in what would certainly be a big way.)
Everyone is welcome to hope and pray that the forecasts are wrong.
But, unfortunately, a crisis situation seems to be headed in New Orleans' direction.
"You need to be scared and you need to get your butts out of New Orleans right now."
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin
When New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin called it the "mother of all storms," he wasn't kidding.
When Katrina made landfall three years ago, it was a Category 3 storm. Current projections call for Gustav to be a Category 4 storm when it is predicted to make landfall on Labor Day, according to the New Orleans Times-Picayune.
And, if that is correct, the surge from the storm will overtop the levees that are strong enough to withstand the violence of the storm itself.
The levees that haven't been rebuilt completely may not have a chance against Gustav.
Residents along the Gulf Coast already are evacuating their homes and moving farther inland to escape Gustav's wrath.
If you're in the New Orleans area, pack up what you can and leave.
Now.
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