Assaulting the President

Back on 4 September 2005, Louisiana Senator Mary Landrieu, after hearing criticism about the real incompetence of the response of state and local officials to Hurricane Katrina, threatened:

If one person criticizes them or says one more thing - including the president of the United States - he will hear from me," she said on the ABC program. "One more word about it after this show airs and I might likely have to punch him. Literally."

And yesterday she refused to apologize.

NewsMax: Sen. Mary Landrieu: I'll Still Punch Bush---

Sen. Mary Landrieu refused on Friday to withdraw or apologize for her threat to punch President Bush if he criticized Louisiana officials - despite Bush's magnanimous speech Thursday night and a federal downpayment of more than $60 billion dollars to rebuild her state.

"I do not take it back, I don't apologize for it. I said I would punch anybody, including the president," she told the Chicago Tribune.

"Though threatening the president is a crime," the Tribune noted - "the Secret Service took it as a joke and the White House brushed off her remarks."

Standing in the Capitol, however, Landrieu made it clear she wasn't joking.

Not a very decorous manner for a Senator of the United States. The Secret Service really ought to take it seriously and haul her in for questioning. With handcuffs.

Threatening the President with physical harm should always be taken seriously. By refusing to apologize, Mary Landrieu sets a horrible example for her constituents.

She's a disgrace. She is a Senator from Louisiana. It was her responsibility, and that of the Governor of the State and the Mayor of New Orleans, to take care of her own state, not the President's.

If anyone ought to be punched it is the Three Stooges: Landrieu, Blanco, and Nagin.

(Curtsy to K-Lo at The Corner)