McCain Blasts Katrina Response

John McCain slammed the Bush response to Hurricane Katrina as “terrible and disgraceful” today after a tour of New Orleans’ Ninth Ward. "Never again, never again” will a disaster be handled so poorly, said McCain, making his most distinct break yet from the current administration, the Washington Post reports. For starters, he said, he'd put qualified people in charge of recovery operations. 

McCain wouldn’t say how much he’d spend on the city and state's reconstruction, but proclaimed, “To protect the lives of American citizens, we can always find the money.” Appearing with the state’s governor, he added, “I don't know of an American who would say, ‘I don't want to spend my tax dollars to protect New Orleans and Louisiana.’” (More John McCain stories.)