Bloodless Coup

Rita and New Orleans

Uh-oh.

"Our worst fears came true," said Maj. Barry Guidry of the Georgia National Guard. "We have three significant breaches in the levee and the water is rising rapidly," he said. "At daybreak I found substantial breaks and they've grown larger."

And I sure hope the governor had more to say about this than the following line (though I suppose it'll make John Tierney happy given his earlier column):

As for those who refuse to leave, Gov. Kathleen Blanco advised: "Perhaps they should write their Social Security numbers on their arms with indelible ink."

While the president's efforts to shift blame to her and Mayor Nagin for the failures of government in regards to the handling of hurricane Katrina were an ugly combination of pathetic and mendacious, saying things like that isn't going to do a lot to convey that she's up to her job.