William Jefferson's Abuse of Power

Rep. William Jefferson doesn't seem to understand his role as a public servant, an elected official. He put his selfish wants ahead of his constituents' needs.

ABC reports:

Amid the chaos and confusion that engulfed New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina struck, a local congressman used National Guard troops to check on his property and rescue his personal belongings — even while New Orleans residents were trying to get rescued from rooftops, ABC News has learned.

On Friday, Sept. 2 — five days after Katrina hit the Gulf Coast — Rep. William Jefferson, D-La., who represents New Orleans and is a senior member of the powerful Ways and Means Committee, was allowed through the military blockades set up around the city to reach the Superdome, where thousands of evacuees had been taken.

Military sources tells ABC News that Jefferson, an eight-term Democratic congressman, asked the National Guard that night to take him on a tour of the flooded portions of his congressional district. A 5-ton military truck and a half dozen military police were dispatched.

Lt. Col. Pete Schneider of the Louisiana National Guard tells ABC News that during the tour, Jefferson asked that the truck take him to his home on Marengo Street, in the affluent uptown neighborhood in his congressional district. According to Schneider, this was not part of Jefferson's initial request.

Jefferson defended the expedition, saying he set out to see how residents were coping at the Superdome and in his neighborhood. He also insisted that he did not ask the National Guard to transport him.

"I did not seek the use of military assets to help me get around my city," Jefferson told ABC News. "There was shooting going on. There was sniping going on. They thought I should be escorted by some military guards, both to the convention center the Superdome and uptown."

The water reached to the third step of Jefferson's house, a military source familiar with the incident told ABC News, and the vehicle pulled up onto Jefferson's front lawn so he wouldn't have to walk in the water. Jefferson went into the house alone, the source says, while the soldiers waited on the porch for about an hour.

Finally, according to the source, Jefferson emerged with a laptop computer, three suitcases, and a box about the size of a small refrigerator, which the enlisted men loaded up into the truck.

...Jefferson said the trip was entirely appropriate. It took only a few minutes to retrieve his belongings, he said, and the truck stayed at his house for an hour in part to assist neighbors.

"This wasn't about me going to my house. It was about me going to my district," he said.

NO, IT WASN'T.

IT WAS ALL ABOUT JEFFERSON.

While the truck was waiting for Jefferson, it got stuck in the mud. The Louisiana guard signaled a helicopter to help. When it arrived, a rescue diver was sent down. Jefferson refused to go up to the helicopter. The pilot sent the diver down once more, but Jefferson still wouldn't go.

The episode took forty-five minutes. The helicopter went on to rescue other people before low fuel required it to end its mission.

The Louisiana Guard then sent a second truck to rescue the first and deliver Jefferson and his belongings to the Superdome.

Jefferson claimed that the incident did not distract from rescue efforts.

Oh really?

How is that possible? Time spent taking him to his home was time spent not tending to people in need.
Clearly, Jefferson's use of his status as a congressman, exploiting resources that should have been used to assist stranded residents, was an abuse of power.

I wonder if Jefferson was among the African-American leaders that insisted racism was a factor in rescue and relief efforts.

The color of Jefferson's skin didn't keep him from using the services of the Louisiana Guard, along with two heavy trucks and a helicopter, so he could visit his home. Meanwhile, thousands were still stranded, desperate for assistance.

Hopefully, Jefferson's constituents will remember this episode on election day.

His incredible selfishness should not be rewarded.