Video: Did the Super Bowl hold back recovery in the Lower Ninth Ward?
posted at 2:51 pm on February 4, 2013 by Ed Morrissey
CBS’ James Brown takes a critical look at the impact of the Super Bowl on the progress of recovery in New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward, both the poorest part of the city and the hardest hit by the flooding following Hurricane Katrina. More than seven years later, the city put plenty of resources into sprucing up its tourist centers and transportation assets, in anticipation of Super Bowl XLVII, played last night. The Lower Ninth has not seen nearly as much attention, which has some local leaders questioning the priorities of the political class in the city and state:
Community leader Patricia Jones told CBS News’ James Brown that in New Orleans, it is a tale of two cities: the city characterized by a refurbished Superdome and the tourist-jammed French Quarter versus the Lower Ninth Ward, the city’s poorest area. She says the Lower Ninth is making a slow recovery in part because the city government and other authorities are dragging their feet.
“Count the years, eight. For us, that’s real. For every apology, it’s not enough. All we know is that we’re not home and these are people making decisions at the policy level that trickle down to regular folks and it hurts.”
Pastor Fred Luter, who grew up in New Orleans and leads one of the city’s largest churches, “For those of us from there, it’s disheartening, discouraging, and a lot of us ask, ‘Why?’” Luter said of the slow pace of progress in the Lower Ninth Ward.
Luter added that he believes the delayed cleanup is a not a matter of economics, or race necessarily. “I think it’s priorities, I really do. We made it a priority to re-do the airport, we made it a priority to clean up downtown. It was a priority because the Super Bowl was coming, well, the Super Bowl is just one day, it’s going to be gone. Let’s make that same priority now for other areas of the city that need it really bad.”
Undoubtedly, the city needed to rebuild its commercial base in order to provide a steady tax stream to proceed with the rest of the repairs needed. But Brown asks a pretty tough question about whether the city put the game ahead of its people, and the answer isn’t terribly complimentary. It’s a good segment for CBS and for James Brown, and kudos for raising the question — although I notice they didn’t raise it last week before the game, which CBS televised.
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Excellent chart shows in a snapshot how ridiculous these cuts are, never mind the dramatic spending by the Dems. Awesome one to share out.
hillsoftx on March 5, 2013 at 10:05 AM
Gallup had Romney and Obama tied going into the election….
libfreeordie on March 5, 2013 at 10:07 AM
If CBS is saying no one is winning then the Republicans are. It would be nice to see the rest of the country cringing, like I do, when our President looks us in the eye and lies to us. Now, when Pravda and Izvestia start cringing, things will change. I don’t see that happening any time soon. Wasn’t it over the weekend that Chris Matthews asked if Obama’s credibility would suffer if there weren’t serious repercussions to the sequester? I would think his credibility would have been shot after him and his administration were caught in all these out and out lies!! It just goes to show you how far apart the MSM is with the rest of the country.
bflat879 on March 5, 2013 at 10:08 AM
..Kabuki..
The War Planner on March 5, 2013 at 10:11 AM
hillsoftx, in the south nearly all the cuts are going directly to public k-12 education. Because, you know, the GOP cares about kids or something.
libfreeordie on March 5, 2013 at 10:13 AM
Nanycy Pelosi should be proud.
The cuts have to go into effect so we can find out what is in them.
weaselyone on March 5, 2013 at 10:15 AM
It seems like the bully pulpit failed to overwhelmingly tip the scales. It will be interesting to see why though. Are people getting tired of the president’s antics? They certainly seem to be paying less attention to the media.
ojfltx on March 5, 2013 at 10:16 AM
Then why didn’t Obama accept the responsibility for redirecting those cuts to other areas when the GOP offered?
Doughboy on March 5, 2013 at 10:16 AM
What did CBS say?
sentinelrules on March 5, 2013 at 10:17 AM
No worries the lsm has his back
cmsinaz on March 5, 2013 at 10:17 AM
IOW, I blame the GOP, ‘cuz the Obama Media Complex told me to.
libtool
antipc on March 5, 2013 at 10:18 AM
Fewer $$$ = fewer teachers = fewer union dues = fewer dollars going to the Democrat party.
Because, you know, Democrats care more about union teachers than students.
sentinelrules on March 5, 2013 at 10:19 AM
So they were within the margin of error?
weaselyone on March 5, 2013 at 10:20 AM
Define “the south”.
weaselyone on March 5, 2013 at 10:21 AM
Zero might have won this if not for the Woodward kerfuffle. The fact that Woodward was getting threatened by the White House because he was going to report that Zero IS LYING about the sequester seems to have gotten through to a few low info voters. Zero had to dial it back and now he looks like the lying clown that he is.
Rational Thought on March 5, 2013 at 10:24 AM
The American people have had to take a 2% cut in income with the expiration of the payroll tax holiday in January. It breaks our collective hearts that the Federal government has to take a less than 2% cut in spending. /
Resist We Much on March 5, 2013 at 10:24 AM
But the Feds borrowed $284 billion in February.
Liam on March 5, 2013 at 10:28 AM
Hey now. It was “only” $254 billion. Let’s not get carried away here.
/
Doughboy on March 5, 2013 at 10:29 AM
Who signed that sequestration order, anyway?
Fallon on March 5, 2013 at 10:30 AM
Well, Obama’s job approval certainly took a hit.His approval rating was 46 percent between Feb 29 and March 2, down from 53 percent a week earlier.
http://www.politico.com/politico44/2013/03/obama-job-approval-tumbles-158422.html?hp=l1
lynncgb on March 5, 2013 at 10:31 AM
Link?
budfox on March 5, 2013 at 10:31 AM
The problem isn’t an embarrassing narrative. It was the pack of lies they launched in the days leading up to sequestration. Ray TheHood talked about unsafe skies due to furloughed air traffic controllers. Janet Nepolitano talked about hours-long waits to be groped by TSA agents. Arne Duncan made the claim that 40,000 teachers would be losing their jobs (even though the feds don’t fund teachers directly) and that some had alreay been pink slipped. These were all lies.
I would suggest that the rat-eared wonder overplayed his hand. Had there been less fearmongering he had a chance to get some PR benefit. Conversely, the GOP didn’t lose ground by making it all about reductions and not revenue enhancement. I don’t know how long it will last but they seem to be playing a long game right now. From sequestration into the CR and budget battles ahead.
Happy Nomad on March 5, 2013 at 10:33 AM
hillsoftx on March 5, 2013 at 10:34 AM
Heh, it’s a keeper. Thank you for sharing.
lynncgb on March 5, 2013 at 10:35 AM
Obama figured the GOP would cave on sequestration. When they didn’t budge despite the threatened cuts to defense, he resorted to his usual fearmongering. But even that didn’t work. What’s sad is you can only wonder how much they’d be able to accomplish if they held their ground like this on other issues like the budget and debt ceiling.
Doughboy on March 5, 2013 at 10:36 AM
Approval ratings! Obama don’t need no stinkin’ approval ratings. He’s not running for anything and he doesn’t really care too much about 2014 either. He wants what he wants and will run the country into a ditch to get it. His second term will horrific.
Aplombed on March 5, 2013 at 10:36 AM
The rat-eared wonder accept responsibility for anything? LOL!
The man even managed to snag a Nobel Peace Prize without personally doing anything to promote peace.
The fact of the matter is the first rule of campaigning is not to leave your fingerprints on anything. You vote present on controversial things like “provide no assistance” when a child manages to survive an abortion. You always give yourself an out and/or have a convenient scapegoat to blame for your failures. And most of all, you don’t set yourself up to be making choices about spending priorities in your administration because that means you have to choose between competing special interests.
Happy Nomad on March 5, 2013 at 10:40 AM
I disagree. He does need solid approval ratings if he’s clinging to his pipe dream of the Dems retaking the House next year. Disarray amongst the GOP will only go so far. If he’s toxic on the campaign trail in 2014, that alone could be enough to mobilize Republicans and conservatives to keep the GOP in control of the House and possibly even hand them the Senate.
Doughboy on March 5, 2013 at 10:40 AM
exactly right, and great chart hillsoftex
DanMan on March 5, 2013 at 10:41 AM
That’s funny – Libfree cries about “Southern States”, but info points to North/South Dakota, Iowa and New Mexico taking the hardest hits because of their dependence on federal dollars.
Huh. Makes you wonder if Lib is just race-bait trolling. Again…
If Allah and/or Ed would ever care to explain why this guy gets to stay, I’d like to read it.
Besides the fact that they talk to him via other channels.
budfox on March 5, 2013 at 10:42 AM
Has anybody copped to nominating Obama three weeks into his presidency yet?
DanMan on March 5, 2013 at 10:43 AM
FINALIST for 2013 THREAD WINNER!!
Khun Joe on March 5, 2013 at 10:44 AM
The debt ceiling is not an area where any politician is going to be holding their ground. The ceiling will be raised. The question is what it is going to take in the way of deficit reductions to get it through. I’m hopeful the House GOP drives a very hard bargain when this comes up later this year.
As to the budget, the House GOP did its homework and passed budgets in normal order. It was the Senate that has refused to even make the pretense of doing what they are required to do by law. My hope here is a CR that doesn’t let the Senate off the hook when it comes to a budget for next fiscal year.
Happy Nomad on March 5, 2013 at 10:45 AM
That’s where them knuckle-draggin’ white boys who talk funny live.
CurtZHP on March 5, 2013 at 10:49 AM
Who needs a link when you can lie? Besides, it’s the South–the entire region is presumptively guilty of everything. The area will never be as advanced as, say, Chicago and Detroit. Oh, wait….
BuckeyeSam on March 5, 2013 at 10:50 AM
For a New Yawk librul, dat’s any place udder dan New Yawk.
Liam on March 5, 2013 at 10:50 AM
Boston is in the South?
Happy Nomad on March 5, 2013 at 10:58 AM
I like the sequester, so “blaming” the GOP is the same in my book as giving them credit. Nevertheless, I’ll bet the Won isn’t happy about this sort of data. After all: Who knows what PR disaster will finally cause the public to have an “emperor has no clothes” moment?
MTF on March 5, 2013 at 11:02 AM
$450 million to Egypt, whose President is a 9/11 Troofer and has said that Jews are the descendants of “apes and pigs”?
Youbetcha!
$300 million to deploy the USS Harry Truman to the Persian Gulf (or prevent some of those cuts to “public K-12 education and autism programmes because, you know, Obama cares about poor and disabled kids or something”)?
Fuggedaboutit!
Aid To The Muslim Brotherhood? Yes. National Security For The United States? No.
Bite me, ya bloody muffin!
Resist We Much on March 5, 2013 at 11:03 AM
Still waiting for a definition of “the south” in relation to nearly all cuts going to education there. In fact, defense spending will take a rather large hit in the south:
http://www.southernstudies.org/2013/02/southern-states-would-be-hit-uniquely-hard-by-sequesters-military-budget-cuts.html
I guess that is what “nearly all” cuts going to k-12 looks like to you.
California is having education funding cut as well. Maybe California is the “south”. But they might have to furlough 64,000 workers related to defense, so it still wouldn’t hold water in defending your claim.
http://www.latimes.com/news/local/political/la-me-pc-sequester-cuts-obama-white-house-congress-california-20130225,0,2452215.story
Defense spending accounted for half of the sequester cuts. For you to claim that nearly all the cuts will affect education defies logic, especially for a region with as much Defense spending as the south.
weaselyone on March 5, 2013 at 11:07 AM
Ya damntootin’ it is. Ya see, itz not onle dem racist, homophobic, Islamophobic, misogynistic, bigoted, illiterate, inbred, snake-handling, dirt-and-squirrel-eating, sister-and-cousin-marrying, tooth-brushing, hair-combing, sheet-wearing, cross-burning, gun-worshiping, voting-against-their-own-self-interests, Chrysun, whyt pepuls in da Ole Cunfeduracee da ain’t evah curring ’bout da edjucumicazion of dem chilluns or da segregayzun…
Resist We Much on March 5, 2013 at 11:16 AM
Obama White House: “Lez Gits Dems Chilluns Edjumicated!”
Resist We Much on March 5, 2013 at 11:18 AM
Liveenslavedthendie don’t need no steekin’ link, silly!
Resist We Much on March 5, 2013 at 11:20 AM
Aaah, yes. The typical low-information, non-thinking 0bama voter.
They have no idea what they should think about an issue until their Lord and Master tells them what to think.
UltimateBob on March 5, 2013 at 11:21 AM
Mr. President, just own it. Gawd what a coward.
jake49 on March 5, 2013 at 11:22 AM
http://www.addictinginfo.org/2013/02/28/how-much-will-the-sequestration-affect-your-state-interactive-map/
libfreeordie on March 5, 2013 at 11:28 AM
It is amazing how $900 billion in stimulus funds did so little for unemployment yet $80 billion will cause so much unemployment.
Quite amazing.
jukin3 on March 5, 2013 at 11:50 AM
From your own link, please see:
That would be the same White House that lied about the origin of the #SequesterJester, attempted to create #Sequesteria, claimed #Sequestersquatch would devour the jobs of Capitol Hill janitors (debunked by the WaPo, CBS and others), screamed that #Sequestrophe had already caused teachers to receive pink slips (debunked and Arne Duncan has admitted he was wrong), reported that #Sequestermageddon has already increased wait times at some airports by 150-200% (debunked by those same airports), etc.
Here’s what I think of the White House’s report: This.
#WeAreThe2Percent
Resist We Much on March 5, 2013 at 11:51 AM
Maybe people are finally realizing that we are effed no matter what.
Hummer53 on March 5, 2013 at 12:03 PM
This 2.4% of spending seems like it accounts for almost all government activity. Here’s and idea.
We’ll give you 2.5%, heck let’s even triple that. That should be more than enough to cover all your needs. /snark
can_con on March 5, 2013 at 12:07 PM
Of course the Republicans are losing in the sequester polls–that is the only party mentioned in any of the questions. Democrat party is never offered as an option to answer.
No skewing the results there!
herm2416 on March 5, 2013 at 12:12 PM
If the polls are showing nobody winning, it probably means that the Republicans are actually winning. People in these polls are usually quick to blame Republicans for pretty much anything. These results tell me that they don’t really blame Republicans for the sequester, but just can’t bring themselves to blame Obama either.
supernova on March 5, 2013 at 12:29 PM
The same polls told me Barry’s approval was in the gutter and couldn’t be re-elected. Gallup is garbage, period. I think conservatives should resist the temptation of interpreting polls to make us feel better. If you are confident your values are right for the country, make your case to the public , don’t compromise and stand tall no matter what the so called polls says.
celticdefender on March 5, 2013 at 12:51 PM
Did ‘Hot Air’ just SERIOUSLY caption the picture ‘NARRATIVE FAILURE’?!
This a complete & utter leadership failure, a total failure by politicians who have lost their d@mn minds!
While we are $16.7 Trillion in debt, while they are setting new ‘monthly’/'annual’/'total’ deficit-spending records, while tax revenue is reportedly the highest amount in U.S. history – our leaders are CREATING self-inflicted econoic crisises, intentionally hurting American citizens in their battles against each other, & burrying us alive under B$, Fear-Mongering, & LIES.
“We don’t have a spending problem”?! Who the h#ll do they think is really buying his B$? Obama, his Education Director, & Napolitano are STILL getting busted for Fear-Mongering-based LIES (as of yesterday afternoon) about Sequestration!
Americans are TIRED of being afraid, tired of these career miillionaire LIARS and self/party-promoting con artists $crewing us & getting paid the highest salaries in the land to do it. To H#LL with ‘PR/Narratives’ – DO YOUR JOB! how about passing a d@mn budget, which is required BY LAW?! That would be a great start!
easyt65 on March 5, 2013 at 1:04 PM
Translation of these polls indicates the dictator wannabe is losing badly.
bgibbs1000 on March 5, 2013 at 1:07 PM
Email tells feds to make sequester as painful as promised
Name a president that has gone out of his way to inflict pain on the American people for political advantage.
#ObamaEstUnMorceauDeMerde
Yeah, you read that correctly.
Resist We Much on March 5, 2013 at 1:17 PM
It dawns on me that part of the problem these days, and the reason this administration/politicians keep using ‘fear Tactics’ to push their agenda, is that the ‘fear’ only goes 1 way:
Obama spent the better part of 2 months prior to Sequestration attempting to scare the H#LL out of – there will be no firemen/policeman to come to your aid, long lines at airports, your kids won’t have teachers, you’ll all lose ou jobs, cats & dogs living together….Armageddon! …and it WORKS!
The country USED TO BE based on a system of checks & balances…but that is GONE. I mean SERIOUSLY:
o This Administration gave thousands of guns to Mexican Drug Cartells resulting in over 300 civilians killed — It was PROVEN Eric Holder LIED UNDER OATH BEEFORE CONGRESS — A FELONY CRIME OF PERJURY….AND NOT A D@MN THING HAPPENED. The Justice department REFUSED to prosecute the case & Congress was left with no other option but to CENSURE him (written ‘slap on the wrist).
o Obama stripped the pension of 20,000 NON-Union auto workers during the auto bailout, & once again an Obama admin person was CAUGHT committing a FELONY – lying under oath to Congress – and once again faced NO penalty!
o Congress/Senate/President have not passed a budget in over 4 years. This is a LAW, that a budget must be passed annually. They have BROKEN THE LAW 4 STRAIGHT YEARS – THAT MAKES THEM CRIMINALS! Yet we have no method to punish THEM for their CRIMES!
We are no longer led by men bound by either Constitution or Law – they openly break it whenever they see fit to do wo & have NO FEAR of doing so because they, like tyrants/emperors, answer to NO ONE.
We have to find a way to RESTORE THE BALANCE, a way to instill FEAR in them once again – a fear of repercussions! Instead of them continuing to believe they are our MASTERS, we have to find a way to remind them they are nothing more than ‘Servants of the People’ & misdeeds once again carry consequences!
easyt65 on March 5, 2013 at 1:20 PM
Ed, sorry about that last blast that did not get past the filters.
Pretty upset at this. Let me try again.
My future, my kids future and my country’s future are NOT A PR ISSUE !!!
Washington DC has failed us. All of the and all of us.
Jabberwock on March 5, 2013 at 1:30 PM
…the MSM is not doing their job!…no wonder JugEars has been rude to them lately!
KOOLAID2 on March 5, 2013 at 1:46 PM
Hey, liveenslavedthendie, Obama said that the GOP would be responsible for everything that happened after the sequester.
Shouldn’t you be calling Republicans and congratulating them for the record that the stock market broke today?
Resist We Much on March 5, 2013 at 1:58 PM