Lt. Gen. Russel Honore barks at troops as a convoy arrives Friday in dowtown New Orleans.
Posted on 09/04/2005 9:09:38 AM PDT by SmithL
ATLANTA - When the cavalry finally arrived in New Orleans to help the survivors of Hurricane Katrina, a cigar-chomping three-star general led the way.
That was Lt. Gen. Russel Honore, commander of the 1st Army, based at Fort Gillem in Atlanta. Normally he oversees training for all deploying troops on the East Coast.
For the time being, the Louisiana native is the man in charge on the front line in New Orleans. He is also coordinating military relief efforts for all storm-ravaged areas along the Gulf Coast.
Honore is winning over even some of the government's harshest critics, including New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, who blasted the Bush administration's initial response to his city's disaster.
"He came off the doggone chopper, and he started cussing, and people started moving," Nagin told a radio station. "I give the president some credit on this. He sent one John Wayne dude down here that can get some stuff done."
Honore and thousands of National Guard troops rolled in Friday and Saturday, bringing food, water and a sense of safety.
The general was careful to show he was leading a humanitarian relief mission in his home state.
"Put those ... weapons down!" he yelled to troops rolling in on trucks.
He repeatedly strode up to soldiers, and sometimes the local police, telling everyone to point their guns down, reminding them they were "not in Iraq."
Honore is from Lakeland, La., northwest of Baton Rouge. He also has a daughter and other relatives who live in New Orleans, according to CNN.
So I guess the looters have been rounded up?
---"He came off the doggone chopper, and he started cussing, and people started moving," Nagin told a radio station. "I give the president some credit on this. He sent one John Wayne dude down here that can get some stuff done."---
Mayor Nagin, bush's biggest mistake was not replacing you with a 'john wayne dude' a week ago. However, federal law gets in the way of dethroning a mayor, no matter how incompetent he really is.
Yet consider the WaPo article saying that Blank-o doesn't want to cede control to someone who knows what they are doing. Criminal!
>>>Honore is from Lakeland, La., northwest of Baton Rouge. He also has a daughter and other relatives who live in New Orleans, according to CNN.
Is his family safe? Does he know where they are?
I'll end my Sunday morning news on a good note.
Good thing he's doing this in New Orleans. If it was Austin, he'd be told he couldn't order anyone or anything until he got rid of his (swwooooon) cigar....
Sounds like an awesome commander.
More evidence that the military can accomplish what the rest of the government can't.
pssssst....martial law
Doogle
Well said Liberace Mayor Dude...
I really find issue with the way Nagin throws around words like "dude", and ",man". He tries way too hard to appeal to the people on the street.
And in New Orleans, that's not necessarily a good thing!
Mayor Nagin,
Remember that movie "Patton" where in one scene a balky donkey was holding up a convoy trying to cross s bridge... so Patton walked up, shot the donkey in the head, and dumped it over the side? Hmmm. Maybe don't you be messing with John-Wayne dudes.
The word had it that this guy gets off the plane and he starts off with ffffing and ffffing that and we're getting up off of our *** and we're going clean this mess up.
That's his job:...... He's a demagogue.
See, even girly-men respect the real deal.
Not to mention he would also have to say "Pretty Please?"
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