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COPYRIGHT 2005 Voxant Inc.
Original Source: THE SITUATION WITH TUCKER CARLSON
JOE SCARBOROUGH, HOST, "SCARBOROUGH COUNTRY": THE SITUATION with Tucker Carlson starts right now. Tucker, what`s THE SITUATION tonight?
TUCKER CARLSON, HOST: Thank you, Joe. It can be an ugly process.
SCARBOROUGH: Yes.
CARLSON: With hurricanes, yes, it can.
Hurricanes Katrina and Rita continue to dominate the national conversation tonight. We`re looking at government contracts awarded without competition and the outrageous plans to spend your money to pay for them.
Plus, we got a pretty scary look at what an emergency evacuation of New York or L.A. might look like, also discuss Lynndie England`s conviction today on prison abuse, and show you the day`s most incredible video, as we always do, on the cutting room floor. So stay for the hour. It`s worth it.
Up first, Hurricane Rita`s path of destruction became painfully clear today. Entire communities reduced to rubble in parts of Texas and large parts of Louisiana. Rescuers still pulling out stranded residents. So far, the death toll from that storm stands at nine.
NBC`s Donna Gregory is in the city of New Orleans with the mayor there trying to put back the pieces. Donna, what`s going on there tonight?
DONNA GREGORY, NBC NEWS CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Tucker.
The mayor is actually telling people that, in some neighborhoods, you`re welcome to come back. Keep in mind, there is very limited fire service, very limited police service, and no critical care service in the hospitals that are open. So it still is an iffy situation.
The clean-up mode is really underway here. It`s surprising how clear the streets are in the Central Business District. Power is on throughout much of that area.
It`s also on in the town of Algiers, which was largely unscathed. Remember last week, the mayor had said, come on back, you can operate businesses. You can live in your homes. And then had to halt that because of the second storm that approached.
Well, those people were invited back today to just resume their lives. However, with limited services, they`re told, don`t bring your kids, don`t bring elderly people, and don`t bring people who are frail, so it`s not life as they once knew it.
In another part of this really besieged town, St. Bernard Parish, people were allowed to come in and survey the devastation there. This is some of what they`re seeing. There`s still probably 20 percent to 30 percent of that parish under water.
And we spoke with some of the officials tonight who are very fearful that once the water is finally pumped out in about a week, they could find more bodies in St. Bernard Parish.
So the situation still very much in flux tonight here in New Orleans, Tucker.
CARLSON: Donna, we`re getting the impression, at least from here, that there is some disconnect between what city officials notably, the mayor, and federal officials want for New Orleans. He -- the mayor, Nagin, seems much more eager to have people back. Are they quarreling? Is there an argument going on about this, do you know?
GREGORY: I don`t know about behind the scenes. In public, they say there`s simply a difference of opinion. You know, when you read some of the things online, some of what`s printed in the newspaper.
It seems that the mayor wants to concentrate on giving people some closure, just giving them their own firsthand look at the damage and then letting them decide how to go on from here.
And the admiral, Thad Allen, is saying that it`s more of an issue of public safety. And he said better to be safe than sorry, better to err on the side of caution, all the cliches you want to say. He`s saying, just wait; give it a little more time.
But you have to know here, Tucker, that the mayor is desperate to get this city up and running. And that`s the catch-22 you have. He wants the businesses to open, but they have no revenue coming in until the people come here. The people don`t want to come to businesses that aren`t doing business, so it`s a chicken and egg sort of situation, who blinks first in this case.
CARLSON: I`m on the mayor`s side. People want to go home. That`s understandable, completely.
Tell me about the parts of the city tourists know, the Garden District, uptown, and of course, the French Quarter. How do they look now?
GREGORY: French Quarter has power tonight. It`s officially turned on in that area. Garden District didn`t suffer much of the flooding, if any, associated with Hurricane Katrina.
So a lot of the areas are clean, well, clean is a relative term down here. Cleaner than some of the damage pictures that you`re seeing. But there are still some areas that are under water.
The French Quarter is not open for business, but definitely has power. So it gives people a sense, I can get inside, figure out the damage, figure out if I want to reopen my business and then go from there.
CARLSON: All right. NBC`s Donna Gregory in New Orleans for us tonight. Thanks, Donna.
You probably already knew that hundreds of billions in federal taxes dollars -- your federal tax dollars are now headed to the gulf region in the wake of this month`s hurricanes, but do you have any idea where the money is actually going?
Specifically, according to this morning`s "New York Times," hundreds of millions have been awarded to companies that seem to have political connections to the Bush White House. The majority came in the form of no- bid contractors. Inspector general of the Department of Homeland Security is calling it a situation ripe for waste, fraud, and abuse.
Our next guest agrees with that. He`s Congressman Bobby Jindal of Louisiana. He joins us now by phone from Washington, D.C., where he just landed from a trip to New Orleans. -- Congressman.
REP. BOBBY JINDAL (R), LOUISIANA: Tucker, it`s good to be with you this evening.
CARLSON: Thanks a lot for joining us. So you agree with the inspector general of homeland security that this is a situation that could be used by people to rip off federal money?
JINDAL: Well, anecdotally, we already have stories about trucks of ice being sent on trips to nowhere, costing us thousands of dollars.
We already have, anecdotally, stories of millions of dollars sent to the state health department that they didn`t need, millions more than they actually spent in this disaster.
My concern is we can`t afford a story of a $600 toilet seat or a $400 hammer. Once those stories come to life, I fear that the nation nation`s patience will run out, and we won`t have what we need to rebuild.
One of the things I`d like to see more of an emphasis on us we know we have to spend money rebuilding people`s homes. On education, homes, lives, and health care.
I worry that if we don`t put even much or how has been on more getting rid of the taxes, creating jobs, people won`t come back.
And I think one of the ways to avoid some of the opportunity for corruption and political favoritism is to get the money as quickly as possible to the private sector. If you get somebody as quickly as possible from the private sector.
For example, if you declared it a no tax, government capital gains five years, got rid of taxes for two years, got rid of depreciation. Think you could put people back to work. They could quickly be back in their own homes. I think that`s a better potter to go.
And I am worried we are going to use up the nation`s resources and patience before we get to the critical -- one of the critical aspects, which is give people jobs.
CARLSON: I totally agree with the first part of what you said, Congressman, that the rest of the country is going to come very soon to resent Mississippi and Alabama, but particularly, Louisiana, which is considered by most people, fair or unfair, as corrupt, if they think their money is being wasted.
But wouldn`t people be sort of resentful, looking on at a state or region that all of a sudden doesn`t have to pay the same taxes they have to pay? Are people going to see that as sort of unfair?
JINDAL: I think the argument is going to be this. I think we spend a lot -- look, we know as a nation, we`re going to spend a lot of attention and resources rebuilding this region.
We can either spend what I think will cost us a lot more money, giving people government provided health care, housing and education....
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