Obama: Let’s Hope Lessons of Katrina Were Learned

BOARDMAN, Ohio — Barack Obama expressed hope Saturday that the lessons learned from Hurricane Katrina three years ago would help to protect the Gulf Coast from Hurricane Gustav this time. His running mate, Joe Biden, urged people to pray that the levees in New Orleans hold. Obama and Biden visited a diner in this Youngstown suburb, an area that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton carried during her failed presidential bid. Trying to connect with those who are economically struggling, the Democratic candidates and their wives chatted with diners and told reporters that a properly orchestrated evacuation would be key to protecting the Gulf Coast. “It wasn’t last time, and hopefully we’ve learned from that tragedy,” Obama told reporters as he left the diner, heading to a memorial service for the late Rep. Stephanie Tubbs Jones, the first black woman to represent Ohio in Congress. She died Aug. 20 from a brain hemorrhage caused by a ruptured aneurysm. On the way to an evening ... (link)