Lost amid the floodwaters of Hurricane Katrina was a report from the Census Bureau on rising poverty and stagnating wages since George W. Bush rode into town. According to the Washington Post (link added):
Bush also has resolved to tackle the poverty that ensnared 28 percent of New Orleans residents and many others on the Gulf Coast. Many of those poor people were unable to heed warnings to evacuate as the storm approached, compounding the disaster as tens of thousands of mostly black residents overwhelmed sparse government provisions when they sought shelter at the Superdome and convention center in New Orleans.
In the meantime, the faces behind the Census numbers tell the story of what it means to be a Bush Republican (and here):
Actions speak louder than words. The Republican Party's hollow rhetoric about reaching out to minority voters can't hide the fact that President Bush's failed leadership has driven more people onto the rolls of the uninsured, pushed more families into poverty and driven down real workers' wages Instead of finding solutions to the problems confronting American families. President Bush and his party have chosen a disastrous special interest-driven agenda highlighted by irresponsible tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans, disastrous deficits, and a risky Social Security scheme that would undermine the promise of retirement security for African American seniors.
