Un-fuckin-believable. No, cancel that. Standard operating procedure*. Read it and scream:

The Army Corps of Engineers, rushing to meet President Bush's promise to protect New Orleans by the start of the 2006 hurricane season, installed defective flood-control pumps last year despite warnings from its own expert that the equipment would fail during a storm, according to documents obtained by The Associated Press.

The 2006 hurricane season turned out to be mild, and the new pumps were never pressed into action. But the Corps and [MWI,] the politically connected manufacturer of the equipment are still struggling to get the 34 heavy-duty pumps working properly.

The pumps are now being pulled out and overhauled because of excessive vibration, Corps officials said. Other problems have included overheated engines, broken hoses and blown gaskets, according to the documents obtained by the AP.

And guess what the political connection was?

When do the revelations stop? (Personally, I'd like for all the Republicans to come out of the closet--even if it turns out to be half the leadership. Healthier, saner, more honest--what's not to like? But it says here that The Base has issues with teh gay.)

Still, I hadn't had Jebbie on the list of possibles, until, well, read for yourself:

Protesters greeted Florida Gov. Jeb Bush on his way to a campaign event for [Rick Santorum R-Man on Dog], and he briefly took refuge in a subway station supply closet to avoid the anti-Republican demonstrators.

Think I'm reading too much into the story?