We all remember August 29, 2005 as the date that Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf and left the City of New Orleans destroyed. More compelling than the physical damage, which was appalling and scandalous, were the desperate, poignant personal tragedies that the ensuing days revealed. Also unmasked was the insensitivity and utter cluelessness of President George Bush, who chose instead to share a birthday cake with his torchbearer, John McCain, on the tarmac of Phoenix Airport. We've seen shots of Bush playing the guitar in San Diego earlier in the day, but the most revealing photos are in Phoenix, with the cake and the broadly smiling McCain. When disaster struck George Bush fiddled while New Orleans drowned and deemed it a bigger priority to eat cake with John McCain. Bush's absence from New Orleans, his failure to engage in the disaster, the lack of responsibility laid bare for all of us to see his lack of leadership. Let's not forget who joined him on that day. |
