Four years ago today, on August 28, 2005, Katrina was upgraded to a Category 4 hurricane, and later a Category 5.
The National Hurricane Center notified Bush administration officials that the New Orleans levees could fail.
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin ordered mandatory evacuations.
The Louisiana National Guard contacted FEMA and requested 700 buses for evacuations. FEMA sent only 100.
The next day, on August 29, Katrina made landfall as a Category 4 hurricane. The White House was notified that the levees were breached.
Thousands of refugees crowded into the Superdome, the convention center, and the airport, where they waited for days to be rescued. Some died while waiting, including babies.
George W. Bush declared, "In America, we do not abandon our fellow citizens in their hour of need."
And so, in that hour of need, Bush partied with John McCain. ("Let them eat cake.")
Condi Rice went shoe shopping.
Donald Rumsfeld enjoyed a baseball game.
And some 1,836 people lost their lives. 705 others are still listed as missing. And, for tens of thousands more, life will never be the same.
After the Vietnam War, we said, "Never again." But Iraq happened.
After the Rwandan genocide, we said, "Never again." But Darfur happened.
After Katrina, we said, "Never again." Did we mean it? Or are those words still as hollow as any of those uttered by our 43rd president?
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