Storm could swamp GOP convention

Planners of the Republican National Convention in St. Paul held emergency conversations Wednesday about what to do if a tropical storm continues on its track as a potential Category 3 hurricane threatening New Orleans.

Gustav’s projected path suggests possible landfall on the convention’s opening day — Labor Day.


The storm could threaten everything from President Bush’s Monday night address to the broader Republican message of effective government management.

Local officials fear a Katrina II — a rerun of the storm that ravished New Orleans and badly damaged Bush’s image. Aides said Louisiana Sen. Mary Landrieu planned to leave the Democratic National Convention in Denver and head back home.

The liberal group Progressive Accountability planned to try to embarrass Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) on Friday for his response to the Katrina strike, claiming his was the 40th senator to visit New Orleans afterwards.

“We will be making sure everyone knows it is not just Bush who has a Katrina problem,” said the group’s Eddie Vale. “McCain was eating birthday cake with Bush after the levees broke. And then he voted against oversight, against medicaid for victims, and against unemployment benefits for victims.”

Government forecasters said the target area runs from south Texas to the Florida Panhandle — including the Louisiana and Mississippi coasts devastated by Katrina.

The president, Laura Bush and Vice President Cheney are all scheduled to speak Monday on the convention’s opening day.

Friday is the third anniversary of Katrina’s landfall. The sloppy government response still haunts the Bush administration, raising questions about whether the president would address a political gathering if the Southeast coast was being battered by another monster storm.

The president is scheduled to fly into St. Paul on Monday, speak at the Xcel Energy Center at 9:40 p.m. Central time, then fly home to spend the night at Camp David.

Spokespeople for the organizations involved in convention planning said they were not ready to comment.

“Stay tuned,” e-mailed an official involved in the conversations.