Don't Play the Blame Game

This may come as a surprise to some, but I'm going to back the administration 100 percent in calling for an end to the "Blame Game." It's unseemly to watch federal officials dodge and weave to avoid accountability for their failings in responding to this disaster and point fingers hoping to pin the blame on local and state officials (or, failing that, on FEMA Director Michael Brown). The President should call a halt to it right now.

It goes without saying that rescue, relief, clean-up, and restoration efforts should remain our top priority, but as a secondary concern, we've still got questions that need to be answered. That's why I'm calling for the Responsibility Test. We'll resolve the issues of who's responsible for the disgraceful efforts in the face of Hurricane Katrina, and whoever needs to be held accountable will be. Although New Orleans is the focal point for obvious reasons, the devastation affected three states, so we should consider all of it. If local officials--of either party--hindered the response, they should be identified and held responsible. If state officials--again, party affiliation is irrelevant--stood in the way, let them stand up now and be counted. And if federal officials--Republican or Democrat--failed to do the job they've been elected or appointed to do, they should step forward to be held accountable. No more blame game. No more elementary-school "Yeah, but he started it." This is the administration that claimed to be putting the grown-ups back in charge, so this is their opportunity to prove it.