Insurance Companies More Likely to Settle Katrina Claims Now That Democrats in Charge of Congress?
Many Katrina claims have been denied or stalled by the major insurance companies. That may change now that Democrats control Congress. Insurance companies and their Republican supporters may be forced to deal to avoid a probe into embarrassing communications between the White House and heads of agencies immediately after Katrina leveled much of New Orleans and the Mississippi Gulf Coast line.
The White House claims executive privilege. The Democrats may use their newly minted subpoena power to force the release of these messages, which could provide new evidence of White House bungling: former FEMA chief Michael (Brownie) Brown told NEWSWEEK that in a still-secret videoconference shortly after Katrina hit New Orleans, he warned presidential aides that 90 percent of the city was being "displaced," but was greeted with "deafening silence."