Texas Representative Jeb Hensarling recently visited New Orleans. While here he blasted state and local officials, saying they want a big federal handout without taking any responsibility or showing accountability. He even has some choice comments for the citizens. “Those able-bodied individuals under 65, what are they doing to help themselves?”

This undeserved criticism was especially harsh since the death and destruction that metro New Orleanians suffered was due to disastrous design and planning mistakes by the US Army Corps of Engineers – a federal agency.

As a member of Congress, Representative Hensarling certainly must know that the Corps of Engineers has sole authority over the design and construction of New Orleans’ flood protection. And everyone knows that Katrina missed New Orleans. Yet the federally built levees failed catastrophically all over the City.

Dan Hitchings, the Director of Task Force Hope with the Corps of Engineers told me in a meeting February 15, 2006 that “the Corps is accountable to the people and to Congress for the performance of the flood protection.” Clearly it didn’t perform.

It is time for the federal government to acknowledge the Corps’ causal role in the flooding. And it is high time that Congress provide the resources necessary to make the citizens of metro New Orleans whole.

Sandy Rosenthal
Founder