My biggest mistake is having a fundamental assumption that … in the country of the United States, that can move whole fleets of aircraft carriers across the globe in 24 hours — that my fundamental...

I’m a little surprised the admiral came out publicly on this, … Maybe since I’ve been away a day or two, maybe he’s the new crowned federal mayor of New Orleans.

We want (FEMA) to allow us to get back to New Orleans and find an appropriate place to bury the people of New Orleans, … We will find a plot. We will find a place....

There have been too many people who have said we were dead. There were too many people who said we were way too divisive. There were too many people who thought this city should go...

I always feel that in politics, you have a bridle on. Well, I took the bridle off. And I tell you, it felt pretty good.

So don’t worry about this city being hijacked by a small group of people who are trying to take us backward,

[New Orleans] basically sits like a bowl, and most of the city is under sea level … so if we get a storm like Ivan to hit us directly

We’re ready to start the re-entry process,

As people come in, they now have a much safer environment to walk around in,

We have to, … It’s not living conditions.

looking for something to take the edge off their jones …

It is a good day in New Orleans. The sun is shining. We’re bringing the city of New Orleans back. This is the first step, … The city of New Orleans … will start to...

We are not letting our guards down, because as you know these hurricanes can change,

In talking with the secretary, he’s basically committed to me that we’re going to take a look at just about every project that was on the drawing board and try and accelerate it,

that we are building New Orleans back.

Our levee systems are still in a very weak condition, our pumping stations are still not at full capacity and any type of storm that heads this way and hits us will put the east...

This shows you what can happen when everybody gets on the same page in Louisiana and really pushes hard to get something done.

The task at hand is to bring New Orleans back, … However, we want everyone to assess the risks and make an informed decision about re-entry plans.

It looks as though at this point there’s a 50 to 60 percent chance that New Orleans will receive tropical force winds which is probably our biggest concern,

If the CIA rubs me out before long, you know what happened.

Right now we are out of resources at the convention center and don’t anticipate enough buses. Currently the convention center is unsanitary and unsafe and we are running out of supplies for 15,000 to 25,000...

You are entering the city of New Orleans at your own risk,

When we allowed people to cross the Crescent City Connection because people were dying in the convention center, that was a decision based upon people, … Now, if they made a decision based upon assets,...

until the resources are in this city.

There are lots of jobs and opportunities in the city of New Orleans, … We want to come out and try to tell them what’s happening while trying to encourage them to come back and...

Today I feel better about Rita, and I’m not as prone to do a hard, mandatory evacuation, … But I want to leave that open as an option.

We are facing a storm that most of us have long feared.

I think if Mr. Benson wants to leave, he could have done it a little bit differently. Not right after a major storm when 80 percent of the city is flooded and most of the...

We will have life. We will have commerce. We will have people getting back into their normal modes of operation.

I’m starting to get into the mode of how do we reopen the city,

The federal government, state government and local government did not have the processes, in my opinion, to deal with a storm of this magnitude,

I feel like we’ve gotten everybody’s attention and hopefully they’ll continue to do what they’re doing.

We have to drain this city.

Sure I do, … I’m not going anywhere.

I would take that bet again.

I don’t know what the gentleman did, but whatever he did, he didn’t deserve what I saw on tape.

Who’s going to buy his tickets? I’m not buying one. … I’m not listening to him on the radio. I’m not doing anything with him, … I’m just appalled.

We want you to take this very seriously, … This not a test. This is the real deal. And I don’t want to panic you but I wanted to make sure you understand.

I need a break from politics, that’s for sure. This is the hardest job in America.

[Yesterday the broken city was filled with the noise of Blackhawk and Chinook helicopters and its still partly flooded highways were filled with rescue crews in flat-bottomed boats, searching those sections of the city still...

The palm trees are swaying and we’ve got 6 to 10 feet (1.8 to 3 meters) waves. It’s very, very rough out there,

I’ll be going on in another direction God has for me. I want to ask you to respect my privacy, respect my decision and just respect my right to be by myself.

My conscience is clear,

Over the next 12 to 15 hours, water will rise on the east bank of New Orleans to the levels where some sections of the city which are dry now could see nine or 10...

I’ve gone from anger to despair to seeing us turn the corner, … It’s going to be awful and it’s going to wake the nation up again.

If fire breaks out, we could lose a significant amount of what we cherish in the city,

Chief Compass is loved by many and we will miss him,

He answered my questions, and he appeared to be pretty sincere.

I think it’s going to send a wonderful message to the world that New Orleans is on the road to recovery.

I want to see corporations signing up for conventions, I want to see people coming to visit New Orleans to help us rebound our economy.