Nagin re-elected mayor of N.O.?

[Pugdog007]

What is wrong with those people???

 

[rie'smom]

They had a choice of the same person but one was African-American and the other was Caucasian.Both men are Democrats with pretty much the same agenda.
Nagin was beat up by the media. I really believe that anyone in his position would have had a terrible time trying to deal with the impact of such a catastrophic event. Could anyone have done a better job? Maybe but maybe not. New Orleans is unique because flood waters do not wash in and then out. It's hard for anybody who doesn't live here to understand the scope of the problem. I fully supported Nagin until he made his comment that,"New Orleans is and should remain a chocolate city." That was a stupid remark.That said,at least,he has been through this kind of trial and has experience. Given the choice of the 2 men,I would have chosen Nagin too.
The problem that I have with this election is that ballots were brought in by Jesse Jackson and others from former New Orleanians living in other states since the hurricane. Will all of these people move back? Highly doubtful because there is no place for them to live and there won't be for the forseeable future.

 

[Caradana]

I think that the main role of the Mayor of New Orleans is to get on TV and attract attention. I'm serious ... the policy is set at state and local levels, the funding and budget come from above, and the amount of influence and power associated with that role is very low. This is just the way that Louisiana law is written. Think about it, Nagin didn't have enough political power to get a levee shored in N.O., and this was a matter of life-and-death for his city. So, what is the most effective tactic for a Louisiana mayor? Get on TV, blow your top, and hope that the fallout attracts enough attention that senior government officials feel the need to act.

I would've voted for Nagin. I don't often agree with his strategy, but he's excellent at getting on TV and putting the pedal to the metal.

 

[Bonds Lurker]

I really believe that anyone in his position would have had a terrible time trying to deal with the impact of such a catastrophic event. Could anyone have done a better job?

Anyone and almost everyone.

 

[lulu71]

I think that the main role of the Mayor of New Orleans is to get on TV and attract attention. I'm serious ... the policy is set at state and local levels, the funding and budget come from above, and the amount of influence and power associated with that role is very low. This is just the way that Louisiana law is written. Think about it, Nagin didn't have enough political power to get a levee shored in N.O., and this was a matter of life-and-death for his city. So, what is the most effective tactic for a Louisiana mayor? Get on TV, blow your top, and hope that the fallout attracts enough attention that senior government officials feel the need to act.

I would've voted for Nagin. I don't often agree with his strategy, but he's excellent at getting on TV and putting the pedal to the metal.

My God, it's a miracle! Someone gets it!!!!! You too, rie'smom.

 

[MagicKingdom05]

I agree and not surprised at all the Nagin was re-elected. I probably would have voted for him as well.

His hands were pretty much tied the whole time down there and he could have bailed and said forget you I quit, but he did and I commend him for that.

 

[arminnie]

I am a legal resident of another state so I am not a registered voter in New Orleans, so I could not vote. Well I guess I could have but chose to be honest.

But I know tons of people in New Orleans. Here's some of the feedback that I got about this election. I made it a point not to post before the election as I didn't want to influence anyone's thoughts who might be voting.

Several people that I know and respect were vehemently anti-Nagin. Gave big money to Landrieu. They were absolutely convinced that New Orleans needed a change in leadership to be taken seriously by the rest of the country.

Even though people made fun of the chocolate remark, I don't know anyone who used that to decide to vote for Landrieu. Many people say felt that Mitch would have a better chance of getting state (he's been Lt. Gov.) and federal (his sister is a senator) funding.

General consensus from several people who know Landrieu personally is that he is a very, very nice guy but not the brightest bulb. (That's a very kind way of stating what was often said in more explicit terms).

Landrieu's father was a "colorful" mayor. Again - the nicest guy and I personally do not consider him a crook, but let's say he ventured into some grey areas financially. Morial, the mayor before Nagin, had a totally corrupt administration.

Landrieu made a point of saying that he would include Morial in rebuilding plans. I'm sure that was an attempt to attract AA votes but concerned many people that corruption would flourish, and Mitch might not be astute enough to prevent it.

Nagin is smarter than Mitch (for whatever that's worth). He was the most honest (if not competent) mayor in decades. I know personally of some of his efforts to root out corruption - including meeting with whistleblowers at 10pm in their homes, etc.

I think Nagin got votes from many who were concerned about possible corruption under a Landrieu administration plus he got the AA block. Half the people I knew said they might not make up their mind until they walked into the voting booth.