i want to bring in retired army general russel honore in baton rouge, louisiana, to talk about whether ready. honore, general, you coordinated the military relief efforts in new orleans after the city was basically in chaos after hurricane katrina. there's a lot of work that has been done. is new orleans ready? >> yes. for this storm and the conditions we have, we put -- the federal government has spent $10 billion on the levees. much of the city infrastructure has been replaced. people have invested in their homes. many of them have been raised. yes, the city is better prepared and i think the people are better prepared skruas a result the investment that's been made since katrina. >> general, are you concerned at all you do not have mandatory evacuations that were ordered for new orleans? officials are relying on the levee system that has not yet been tested and there are folks in the city. is that a problem? >> it would be, suzanne, because that levee system was designed primarily to keep the surge water out. the problem with new orleans, before katrina and ever since the city's bee

serpasnd chairman of the republican national convention may overan toe toshio villaraigosa and russell honore and richard knabb from the hurricane center will be with us as well. "starting point" begins right now. hi, everybody, welcome. let's introduce our team to you this morning, a little bit to my left is lenny curry, nice to see you again. >> nice to see you. >> always raining when i visit you. >> roland martin is with us as well. we're waiting on ryan liz za, a correspondent with the new yorker and jessica yellin joining our team this morning. >> cute boots. >> my boots, yeah, got the cute boots. >> mine are in the back. >> it's raining. it's quite a mess, not as bad as some projected when we were talking last week. we're talking first and foremost about the weather. thousands of people in louisiana and mps and alabama are being told to leave their homes because tropical storm isaac is taking aim at the northern gulf coast. a state of emergency has been declared in those three states and hurricane warnings are now in effect from louisiana to the florida panhandle. the storm could become

for now we'll go to lieutenant russell honore. he was in charge in response to katrina.ou're seeing tonight, how does this compare with what you had to deal with in katrina? >> well, anderson, the effects is what we dealt with after the storm. this pre -- this is the first half of this big event. observing at that time, it's almost a replay of the drama associated with katrina. the difference is that we did not evacuate new orleans in a deliberate mandatory evacuation. so this is a lot more people in the city than we have in katrina. >> are you confident that with all of the reinforcements, the billions and billions of dollars that was spent, are you confident we're not going to see any scenes even remotely like the appalling scenes that we saw in katrina? >> i would say that the levee is a lot better shape. i will not speculate until this incident is over. i'm convinced now anything built by man can be destroyed by mother nature. i think we're in a wait and see mode. i think we could see tidal surge damage. i think we could have a lot more water in the city from raining

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we thank you so much, lieutenant general russel honore, it's always a pleasure to talk to you.eciate it. all right. you can get updates on facebook.com/cnn/groups. we're back with more right after this. great shot. how did the nba become the hottest league on the planet? by building on the cisco intelligent network they're able to serve up live video, and instant replays, creating fans from berlin to beijing. what can we help you build? nice shot kid. the nba around the world built by the only company that could. cisco. exclusive to the military, and commitment is not limited to one's military oath. the same set of values that drive our nation's military are the ones we used to build usaa bank. with our award winning apps that allow you to transfer funds, pay bills or manage your finances anywhere, anytime. so that wherever your duty takes you, usaa bank goes with you. visit us online to learn what makes our bank so different. begins with back pain and a choice. take advil, and maybe have to take up to four in a day. or take aleve, which can relieve pain all day with just two p

we are talking to retired general russel honore who led the rescue operation after hurricane katrinaaid that the government should require the nursing homes to evacuate long before the hurricane hits, and he is joining us from baton rouge, and general, explain to us, because i understand that at least nine nursing homes in southern louisiana did evacuate before the storm did arrive and how did that happen that some places get the folks out, and others don't, and who makes that call? >> yeah, it is up to the nursing home officials based on the warning. when you have a voluntary evacuation from areas. that needs to be refined again, and we learn something new after each one of the storms, because the people in the nursing home don't have a choice. they do what the nursing home operators based on their decision, and that was an ugly story after katrina, as you remember, suzanne. >> yes shgs, i do remember. a lot of people including my relatives looking for folks in nursing homes, and sometimes it is actually more stressful when you have people evacuated than just staying put. how do you

for now we to 'lgoeutenant russell honore. he wasin charge in response to katrina.ou're seeing tonight, dohow his compare with what u had toeal wi in katrina? >> well, anderson, the efcts what we dealt with after the storm. is pre-s the first half of this big event obing at th time, it's almostlaye drama associated with katrina. the difference is that we did evacuation.ew orleans in a so this is a lot more people in the city than we have in katrina. >> are youonfident thith all he reiorcements, the billions and billions drs that wpentare yo coident 're not gointo see appalling scenesha w sawlik inkatrina? >> i wou skay that the levee is a loetter shape. iwill not speculate until this convinced now anything built by man can be destroyed by mother nature. i think we're in a wait and see mode. i think we could see tidal surge damage. i think we could have a lot more water in the cy from raining, 12 to 20 inches is predicted and that could still be a problem for the city of new orleans. >> what is the key thing for the people there to do now as the next few hours unfold

. >> retired lieutenant general russel honore, thanks so much for your time.s appreciate your insight and expertise. thanks for being available. appreciate it. >>> you just heard the gulf coast has its eye on icing. it is moving west and getting stronger. up next we check in with meteorologist chad myers for a look at what's happening with the storm right now. [ engine idling ] [ engine revs, tires squeal ] [ male announcer ] more power. more style. more technology. less doors. the 2012 c-coupe. join mercedes-benz usa on facebook for the best summer sweepstakes. and these are the ones you'll love on a school night. pillsbury crescent dogs with just a few ingredients you have an easy dinner... pillsbury crescent dogs... school night ideas made easy. pillsbury crescent dogs... ♪ forz(power!) andiamo! andiamo! (let's go! let's go!) avanti! avanti! (keep going! keep going!) hahaha...hahahaha! you know ronny, folks who save hundreds of dollars by switching to geico sure are happy. and how happy are they jimmy? happier than christopher columbus with speedboats. that

russell honore was the man who coordinated efforts in the wake of katrina.nd enough to join us from baton rouge. welcome, general. >> good morning. >> president obama is set to speak in about seven minutes. what do you hope he says? >> i hope he uses presidential power and declare this a hurricane and get it over with so people are not confused that it's just a tropical storm. we knew it will reach based on the science sometime this evening, but we need to be taking action now and treating this like a hurricane, a category 1 hurricane, but as it gets late e, it's going to get dark and people will not act, thinking it's just a thunderstorm. i hope that's what he declares. i know the government is treating it like a hurricane, but we should not confuse the people saying it's just a tropical storm. >> governor jindal, the governor of louisiana, he seemed upset that the federal government wasn't putting forth more money for storm preparation. the federal government's going to pay 75%. state of louisiana has to pay the rest. is he right to be critical? >> well, t

. >> lieutenant general russell honore, sir, great to talk to you from even from a distance.ow back to david mattingly as i head back out here in the high winds. it's a very similar situation to what david is experiencing in gulfport, mississippi. david, tell me a little bit about what it's like now where you are. >> reporter: soledad, sounds like i'm seeing about the same thing that you are right now. a torrent of rain right now. we've also had continuous tropical storm conditions since midnight. it's ramped up. in about the last 10 minutes. one of those bands going through. you just really don't know what to expect from minute to minute with these storms. and isaac is proving to be no different from what we've seen in the past. take a look behind me. this was what we're all watching right now. it was a very nice, calm, smooth water a few minutes ago. look at it now. the water is up, actually lapping up against the seawall behind me. further down the road on highway 90, it's actually up on the highway, i'm told, by city officials. but what we're looking for is a high tide th

birthday of jean kelly barbara eden of "i love jeanie" and mark russell of course and today would have been the 66th birthday of keith moon. in honorkeith try to throw a chair out of your hotel window. we'll be talking about abortion and rape, something men are talking about a lot in america. before we get started let's go to lisa ferguson for a news update. >> mitt romney is looking to expand u.s. oil production if he's elected president. he will be in new mexico today where he's outlining the campaign's new energy policy. not surprisingly, romney's plan does little to address green jobs but it does call for more domestic energy development and for reaching north american energy independence by 2020. that includes developing the keystone pipeline and expanding gas and coal production around the country. he also wants to take away federal responsibilities, leaving the states in charge of leasing and regulation. that is a big contrast from president obama's plan which calls for more renewable fuels like wind and solar power. >>> as for the president he is off the campaign trail today. nothing on his schedule other than the daily mee