Look, it's a bad thing when five people get shot to death over the weekend. But sending in the National Guard? What in the heck kind of mismanagement is going on in New Orleans? This is ludicrous. The population is considerably lower than it was, yet one presumes the police force all still have jobs.
Why aren't they doing those jobs?
"The senseless slaying of five teenagers this weekend is shocking," Blanco said in a statement. "Things like this should never happen, and I am going to do all I can to stop it."
The governor did not specify how many troops and officers she planned to deploy. Earlier Monday, Mayor Ray Nagin asked for as many as 300 National Guardsmen and 60 state police officers.
It was the first time the National Guard has been used for law enforcement in the United States since the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Katrina.
Nagin had sought the troops after five teenagers in an SUV were shot and killed in the city's deadliest attack in at least 11 years. Police said the attack was apparently motivated by drugs or revenge. Also, a man was stabbed to death Sunday night in an argument over beer.
"Today is a day when New Orleanians are stepping up. We've had enough," Nagin said. "This is our line in the sand. We're saying we're not going any further."
Nagin said he would not allow criminals to take over when the city is still trying to recover from the hurricane. The mayor said troops should be posted in heavily flooded neighborhoods to free police to concentrate on hot spots elsewhere.
Why is the Governor sending troops in? I think New Orleans would have been better off with the dead guy for mayor.
Now watch President Bush get blamed for not sending in the troops by now.
Hey, the day is still young.
New Orleans P.D. has a notorious history of currpution, but I don’t know if that’s why Blanco/Nagin have turned to the Guard or if there just aren’t enough cops to spread around. Still, your average National Guardsman is not trained to police gang and drug activity, and I certainly hope none of them get shot trying to deal with the problem.