Kathleen Blanco

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Kathleen Blanco
Order: 55th Governor of Louisiana
Term of Office: January, 2004
Predecessor: Mike Foster, Jr.
Successor: Incumbent
Date of Birth: December 15, 1942
Place of Birth: New Iberia, Louisiana
First Gentleman: Raymond Blanco
Profession: Marketing Consultant
Political Party: Democratic
Lieutenant Governor:

Mitch Landrieu (2004–)

Kathleen Babineaux Blanco (born December 15, 1942) is an American politician. On November 15, 2003, she was elected Governor of Louisiana, defeating Republican opponent Bobby Jindal in a run-off election by a margin of 52% to 48% and becoming the first woman to hold the office.

She was born in New Iberia, Louisiana, daughter of Louis Babineaux and his wife, the former Lucille Fremin. She graduated from the University of Southwestern Louisiana, now known as the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, in 1964. She served two terms as Louisiana's lieutenant governor, from 1996 to 2004. Prior to that, she was on the Public Service Commission and was a state legislator. She will face re-election in 2007. Kathleen Blanco is a member of the Democratic Party.

Presently, she has become a figure of national attention due to her status as the highest-ranking politician in a state devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

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Lieutenant Governor of Louisiana

During her time as lieutenant governor, Blanco focused much of her work on developing the state's tourism industry. Her efforts led to Franco Fête, a statewide celebration of 300 years of French influence in Louisiana in 1999. The festivities drew a large number of tourists, especially from France and Canada. Blanco also coordinated another large tourism success - the state's celebration of the 200th anniversary of the Louisiana Purchase in 2003. Blanco was well-suited to this task, utilizing and showcasing her own French-Acadian Cajun ancestry.

Governor of Louisiana

On 11 January of 2004 she took the oath of office in both English and French, succeeding Murphy J. Foster, Jr. as Governor of Louisiana. Blanco's has traveled more than her predecessor, seeking new sources of economic development for the state. She has visited Nova Scotia, and in December 2004, visited Cuba to boost trade with the state. During this controversial visit, she met with President Fidel Castro- a leader with whom the American government has no formal diplomatic relations. As of 2005 Governor Blanco will also be visiting Asia (primarily Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan) in the near future.

A major focus of Governor Blanco's time in office has been the future of the football team the New Orleans Saints, one of two major sports franchises in the state of Louisiana. At one time or another, Governor Blanco has proposed the construction of a new stadium for the team, a renovation of the Louisiana Superdome, and has implied that the state cannot afford to retain the team. This has led to an ongoing impasse between Governor Blanco and Saints owner Tom Benson. In the spring of 2005, Benson halted negotiations between the team and the state until after the 2005 NFL season is over. While Governor Blanco would certainly like to resolve this issue and remain focused on issues such as education, there is little doubt that the outcome of this debate will play a major role in Louisiana's future economic development.

Hurricane Katrina

Governor Blanco is currently grappling with the massive damages to the State of Louisiana in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. Extensive and severe damage was caused by the Hurricane across the Gulf Coast region of the southeastern United States, including Louisiana's largest city, New Orleans, on August 29, 2005.

Actions in advance of Katrina

On August 27, 2005, Governor Blanco sent a request for federal assistance and US$9 million in aid to President George W. Bush, which stated, "...I have determined that this incident is of such severity and magnitude that effective response is beyond the capabilities of the State and affected local governments, and that supplementary Federal assistance is necessary to save lives, protect property, public health, and safety, or to lessen or avert the threat of a disaster. I am specifically requesting emergency protective measures, direct Federal Assistance, Individual and Household Program (IHP) assistance, Special Needs Program assistance, and debris removal." Also in the requesting letter, the governor stated: "In response to the situation I have taken appropriate action under State law and directed the execution of the State Emergency Plan on August 26, 2005 in accordance with Section 501 (a) of the Stafford Act. A State of Emergency has been issued for the State in order to support the evacuations of the coastal areas in accordance with our State Evacuation Plan and the remainder of the state to support the State Special Needs and Sheltering Plan."[1][2] [3]

FEMA, in a press release dated August 27, stated that President Bush authorized the allocation of federal resources, "following a review of FEMA's analysis of the state's request for federal assistance." [4] A White House press release of the same date also acknowledges this authorization of aid by President Bush. [5] On August 28, Governor Blanco sent a second letter to President Bush, which increased the amount of aid requested to US$130 million. [6] Time magazine has reported that on August 29, the day that Hurricane Katrina hit New Orleans, Governor Blanco could reach neither Bush or his chief of staff and had to leave a message pleading for help with a low-level adviser. [7]

Actions following Katrina

On September 1, 2005, Governor Blanco authorized National Guard troops to "shoot and kill" rioters and looters, [8] which followed President Bush's statement that looters in New Orleans and elsewhere in the chaotic aftermath of Hurricane Katrina should be treated with "zero tolerance" [9]. The attitude to looters, and the perception that police and national guard resources were diverted to deal with looters, were sources of controversy and criticism. Governor Blanco was also criticized for allegedly having only a minor subset of her available National Guard troops standing by on ready, and for not being able to provide relief supplies and standby medical or other first responder personnel to New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin for the victims of the hurricane. A Newsday article by Jim Pinkerton, for example, claims "The Louisiana Guard has about 11,000 members, of whom 3,000 are in Iraq. And yet, of the remaining 8,000 in the Pelican State, fewer than half were on duty the day Katrina struck." [10]

In fact, Louisiana actually had 3,500 ready out of 6,500 national guards available; in comparison, Mississippi had 850 guards on duty, and Alabama had 350 as of August 30. [11] In addition, Governor Blanco had accepted an offer of National Guard reinforcements from New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson. Although this agreement was made on August 28, the day before Katrina struck, the paperwork required to deploy troops did not arrive from the federal government until September 1. The specific cause of the delay is still unclear. [12] An article in the Washington Post cites three state and federal officials as stating collectively that "Louisiana did not reach out to a multi-state mutual aid compact for assistance until August 31", but also quotes one as saying erroneously that as of September 3, Governor Blanco had not declared a state of emergency in Louisiana. [13]

Controversy has continued to circle the issue of the National Guard. According to an article in Newsweek [14], President Bush and Governor Blanco met on Air Force One on Friday, September 2, 2005 while it sat on the tarmac at the New Orleans airport. Echoing requests submitted by President Bush to Governor Blanco in a memo prior to the meeting, Mayor Nagin suggested federalizing the National Guard to improve the command structure. According to Sen. David Vitter, a Republican ally of Bush’s, Bush turned to Governor Blanco and said, "Well, what do you think of that, Governor?" Blanco told Bush, "I’d rather talk to you about that privately." To which Nagin responded, "Well, why don’t you do that now?". Immediately following that private meeting, according to a September 7, 2005 Washington Times article [15], Mayor Nagin said that "He (Bush) called [Nagin] in that office, and he said, 'Mr. Mayor, I offered two options to the governor.' I was ready to move. The governor said she needed 24 hours to make a decision."

Governor Blanco with President George W. Bush, September 25, 2005.
Enlarge
Governor Blanco with President George W. Bush, September 25, 2005.

Governor Blanco subsequently rejected the proposal. President Bush continued to press the offer so Governor Blanco rejected it in writing on September 6, citing the need for flexibility in National Guard operations, particularly the need for Guard in areas other than New Orleans where the military is not currently operating.[16] Governor Haley Barbour of Mississippi reportedly declined a similar offer from the President. It has not previously been a policy during natural disasters to combine the command of National Guard and military operations under the authority of the President.[17] President Bush has the power to take command of National Guard brigades under the Insurrection Act without the agreement of a state Governor, but no President has done this since Lyndon Johnson in the 1960s and President Bush has so far also declined to do so. However, Governor Blanco and Major General Bennett Landreneau, commanding Louisiana's National Guard, have co-operated closely with Lieutenant General Russel Honoré, commanding military operations under Joint Task Force Katrina.

CNN and Fox News reported the Louisiana Homeland Security Department (which operates under the authority of Governor Blanco) refused to allow the American Red Cross to enter the city of New Orleans. [18], [19] The American Red Cross Web site confirms that the organization had not been allowed to enter the city to provide aid but also states that it is providing relief at the evacuation centers: "As the remaining people are evacuated from New Orleans, the most appropriate role for the Red Cross is to provide a safe place for people to stay and to see that their emergency needs are met. We are fully staffed and equipped to handle these individuals once they are evacuated." The deputy director of Louisiana's Homeland Security Department, Colonel Jay Mayeaux, has stated that he asked the Red Cross to delay relief operations for 24 hours for logistical reasons, and by the time that was up the evacuations had already begun.[20]

On September 14, after President Bush had accepted responsibility for all problems that occurred at the federal level[21], Governor Blanco accepted responsibility for all problems that occurred at the state level. Blanco stated, "At the state level, we must take a careful look at what went wrong and make sure it never happens again. The buck stops here, and as your governor, I take full responsibility."[22]

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Preceded by:
Mike Foster, Jr.
Governor of Louisiana
2004–present
Incumbent


Current governors of states and insular areas in the United States

AK: Frank Murkowski
AL: Bob Riley
AR: Mike Huckabee
AZ: Janet Napolitano
CA: Arnold Schwarzenegger
CO: Bill Owens
CT: M. Jodi Rell
DE: Ruth Ann Minner
FL: Jeb Bush
GA: Sonny Perdue
HI: Linda Lingle

IA: Tom Vilsack
ID: Dirk Kempthorne
IL: Rod Blagojevich
IN: Mitch Daniels
KS: Kathleen Sebelius
KY: Ernie Fletcher
LA: Kathleen Blanco
MA: Mitt Romney
MD: Robert L. Ehrlich
ME: John Baldacci
MI: Jennifer Granholm

MN: Tim Pawlenty
MO: Matt Blunt
MS: Haley Barbour
MT: Brian Schweitzer
NC: Mike Easley
ND: John Hoeven
NE: Dave Heineman
NH: John Lynch
NJ: Richard Codey (acting)
NM: Bill Richardson
NV: Kenny Guinn

NY: George Pataki
OH: Bob Taft
OK: Brad Henry
OR: Ted Kulongoski
PA: Ed Rendell
RI: Donald Carcieri
SC: Mark Sanford
SD: Mike Rounds
TN: Phil Bredesen
TX: Rick Perry
UT: Jon Huntsman, Jr.

VA: Mark R. Warner
VT: Jim Douglas
WA: Christine Gregoire
WI: Jim Doyle
WV: Joe Manchin
WY: Dave Freudenthal
AS: Togiola Tulafono
GU: Felix Perez Camacho
MP: Juan N. Babauta
PR: Aníbal Acevedo Vilá
VI: Charles Wesley Turnbull

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