Did New Orleans Mayor Blame Trump for Mardi Gras Not Being Cancelled? [Video]
New Orleans mayor LaToya Cantrell was a guest recently on CNN's "The Situation Room" with host Wolf Blitzer. In the interview, they of course talked about the coronavirus' tremendous impact on the Crescent City.
But it's some of the comments that Cantrell made in the interview about the federal government that has sparked the ire of many around here.
Watch this excerpt from her interview first and you be the judge.
As you heard in the interview, Cantrell says:
When it's not taken seriously at the federal level, it's very difficult to transcend down to the local level in making these decisions. But when the experts told me that social gatherings would be an issue, I moved forward with cancelling them, as well as St. Patrick's Day parade, as well as our Super Sunday...so this is something that not only concerns us, but it sets the tone for how leadership matters at every level of government in the United States of America.
Just for a perspective regarding the timeframe, Mardi Gras Day was February 25. The first presumptive case of COVID-19 in Louisiana was announced on March 9. That's 12 days.
As we know, New Orleans has been the hardest-hit area in the state. The total number of cases of COVID-19 through March 26 was 997 there with 46 deaths. That's among the 2,305 total cases reported in the state with 83 deaths.
You be the judge, does Mayor Cantrell have a leg to stand on or is she just trying to find a scapegoat?