Honore on the March?

Josh Marshall flags this item about General Russel Honoré moving back to Louisiana, writing that even New Orleans Democratic Mayor Ray Nagin, "when asked whether he'd support retired Gen. Russel Honoré if he gets into the Louisiana Senate race as a Republican, 'Oh, man, I'll support that guy any way he goes.'"

Setting aside that the article doesn't mention the Senate race or parties, only whether or not the retired general might get "into politics," (more context here), Honoré doesn't strike me as any kind of Republican we're familiar with, despite his apparent social conservatism and his military background. When I had the chance to speak to him extensively for this piece on disaster preparedeness in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, Honoré absolutely focused on economic justice. A major failure in the response to Katrina was the lack of planning surrounding poor residents of New Orleans, who did not have the resources to evacuate themselves. Here's Honore:

Outside of FEMA, there are broader issues of federal policy that will affect the government's capability to respond effectively to disasters. One of the most critical is poverty and community development.

"If you have an impoverished area, you have to have a good evacuation plan because poor people may not have cars to leave with," Honoré said. "If they do have a car, they don't have a credit card to call and reserve a hotel. The majority of the people we evacuated out of the city were poor people."

After Katrina, anti-poverty efforts briefly became a national issue as disproportionate effects of the disaster on low-income, minority residents of places like the 9th Ward in New Orleans became clear. Similarly, reports suggest that Hispanics suffered more than others did during California's wildfires. The problems in these communities include everything from limited access to vehicles and mistrust of government officials to a lack of education and information, both generally and on emergency preparedness.

..."What Katrina uncovered is what happens when a disaster hits an impoverished area and the impact of the disaster on the poor, the elderly, the disabled, and small businesses," said Honoré.

For Honoré, then, disaster preparedness had to include improving the economic situation of New Orleans' residents. He stresses education reform as central to combating poverty. But he also made a point of remembering when New Orleans supported a black middle class, thanks to strong unions in the city ports, and how important fair wages and jobs are to building a solid community. He also discussed the need for more support of affordable housing efforts. One oft-repeated phrase in our conversation was, "It's not main street or Wall Street; it's railroad street. That's where the poor people are."

I don't get the impression that Honoré, who has spent the last few years since his retirement focused on rebuilding efforts in the Gulf, is particularly partisan or even particularly liberal. But looking at the issues that are important to him, it's hard to see him stepping into a Republican primary and winning. Nonetheless, given his popularity in New Orleans, where he really turned around the federal response to the disaster, his Creole background, and his blunt charm, he'd be a formidable candidate. And it would be an interesting experiment in whether Republicans could field a candidate who doesn't fit in with the usual party orthodoxies.

-- Tim Fernholz