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Rebuilding New Orleans With Ray Nagin Armstrong Williams Ray Nagin, recently re-elected mayor of New Orleans, is the right man to lead the Big Easy back to prominence. After beating 23 challengers, most prominently sitting Lieutenant Governor Mitch Landrieu, Nagin received a vote of confidence and the support of his constituents – now he just needs the support of the Democratic Party, Congress and Louisiana state officials.
Besides President Bush, Nagin has been the most vilified person in America over the last year. Immediately after Hurricane Katrina, Nagin was criticized for mishandling evacuation procedures, for making insensitive remarks about Hispanics, and for his "Chocolate City" speech in which he stated that God was mad at black Americans. Nagin also faced stiff opposition over the last four years from the pro-Landrieu City Council, which prevented him from passing legislation. Progressive groups have accused Nagin of being a closet Republican who switched parties to win the New Orleans mayoral election in 2002. Furthermore, the leader of the Democratic National Committee, Howard Dean, reportedly dislikes Nagin and backed Landrieu during the recent campaign. Despite concerns amongst senior black officials in the party that the DNC should stay neutral, Dean sent field teams to actively promote Landrieu. Like President Bush, Nagin needs to ignore the naysayers, forget about political bickering, and just focus on getting the job done. But he can't do it alone.
The Democratic Party can take a major step toward winning back Congress by helping Nagin bring New Orleans back. By giving Nagin the support and resources he needs, the party will gain the favor of two major groups: wealthy citizens and poor citizens. Story Continues Below
Wealthy Americans have already dumped large sums of privately donated money into the New Orleans relief effort, and a united effort by the Democratic Party will encourage them to vote for their Democratic representative in the midterm elections. Poor Americans, especially minorities, will see the Democratic support as proof that the "party of the people" is finally doing something practical to help those in need. The Democratic Party needs all the good will it can get, and a good place to start is with Nagin and New Orleans.
Congress (i.e., the Republican Party) should do whatever it can to help Nagin succeed. It should help him for three reasons: One, New Orleans needs its financial support. Two, the country needs to see its federal government doing something positive during this era of corruption and incompetence. And three, the support the party gives will give it some political leeway to maneuver during the next two years. Every dollar Congress gives to aid the rebuilding of New Orleans will be a positive step toward achieving each of these objectives. A true commitment from Congress could go a long way for the Republican Party – especially come November.
Louisiana state officials must work closely with Nagin if they want to see their state return to glory. Fortunately for Nagin, four new City Council members are in place, which should help him further his agenda and take the necessary steps to rebuild after Katrina. State officials and Landrieu supporters need to realize that Nagin, a New Orleans native, is the right man for the job. Centralizing power in the Landrieu family is unwise and unproductive. Landrieu has a less than stellar history (take note of his unsuccessful stint in Governor Kathleen Blanco's administration, which was considered a total disaster) and, despite Nagin's mistakes over the last year, he is the better choice for mayor. If state officials can come to terms with this fact, they will expedite and ease the process of rebuilding Louisiana.
The rebuilding of New Orleans is not going to happen overnight. In fact, it won't happen in 100 nights. Creating a citywide infrastructure essentially from scratch takes many years, millions of dollars and a around-the-clock effort. Nagin will raise the money, spend it properly and work diligently until he completes the job. Ray Nagin has our backing. Now let's hope that his party, his government and his colleagues follow our lead.
www.armstrongwilliams.com Editor's note: Read more on this subject in related Hot Topics:
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