In New Orleans: First Katrina, Now Violent Crime

Making News

US in Fractured Somalia on the Hunt for al Qaeda ()

Eight years after al Qaeda's bombing attacks on US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, Somali officials say the ringleader may have been killed by recent air strikes. So far, US officials have not confirmed neither that nor US involvement in the attacks, though it does appear that Somalia has become a new front in the war on terror, as we hear from John Donnelly of the Boston Globe.

Guests:

• John Donnelly: Reporter for the Boston Globe

Links:

• Donnelly’s article on US exploiting situation in Somalia to hunt for al Qaeda

Main Topic

Bush to Detail Iraq Plan, Admit Mistakes in Tonight's Speech ()

The White House said today that "a vast majority of the American people are not satisfied with the progress in Iraq" and that "President Bush is in their camp."  In tonight's speech, President Bush will commit 21,000 new troops to Iraq, contingent on its government meeting "benchmarks" and "milestones." He'll also admit strategic mistakes and say that US operations have been "handcuffed by political interference" from the Iraqi government. We get a preview of tonight's speech from Yochi Dreazen of the Wall Street Journal and Rick Klein of the Boston Globe.

Guests:

• Yochi Dreazen: Reporter for the Wall Street Journal, @yochiNJ
• Rick Klein: Political reporter for the Boston Globe

Main Topic

Is New Orleans Safe for Anyone? ()

Immediately after Katrina, violent crime all but disappeared from New Orleans as the city lost about half of its pre-hurricane population. But the police chief says that 80% of its criminals have come home, and a headline in last week's Times-Picayune read "Killings bring the city to its bloodied knees." Recent murder victims include Dinerral Shavers, a 25-year old high school teacher and drummer for the Hot 8 Brass Band, gunned down in broad daylight driving his car with his family. Another was Helen Hill, a filmmaker and wife of a doctor, shot to death when she answered a morning knock on her door in a Bohemian neighborhood near the French Quarter. In the aftermath of such high-profile murders, citizens are ready to march on City Hall. We visit a devastated city that's under siege. Will New Orleans be safe for Mardi Gras less than six weeks from today?

Guests:

• Baty Landis: Owner of the Sound Cafe
• Gwen Filosa: staff writer with the Times-Picayune
• Peter Scharf: Founding Director of the Center, for Society, Law and Justice
• John Raphael, Jr: Pastor of New Hope Baptist Church
• Mary Beth Romig: Director of Communications for the New Orleans Metropolitan Convention & Visitors Bureau