Olbermann's "Worst Person in the World"

Admittedly, my beloved and I have been a bit addicted to news coverage of Hurricane Katrina, but this piece made us throw things at the TV.

But, first, time for COUNTDOWN‘s list of today‘s three nominees for another special Katrina version of the title for worst person in the world.

At the bronze level, Commander Michael Holdener, air operations chief at the Navy base at Pensacola. He chastised two of his helicopter pilots. They had come upon 100 residents trapped in the floodwaters near the University of New Orleans. They rescued them, but they were not supposed to do, said Commander Holdener. They were supposed to just deliver water and spare parts to Mississippi and then come right back. They had a lot of nerve rescuing civilians during the return trip. There might have been more spare parts to ship.

Also nominated, speaking of FEMA, the guy there in charge of maps. Twice yesterday, medical teams were scrambled at the airport in Charleston, South Carolina, to meet a plane full of injured evacuees from Houston. Both time, FEMA had sent the planes to Charleston, West Virginia, not Charleston, South Carolina.

But your winner, FEMA spokesperson Mary Hudak. She has defended what the agency did with 1,400 firefighters from across the country who had volunteered to help throughout the Gulf Coast. FEMA told the firefighters that they would be handing out fliers with FEMA‘s toll-free phone number to residents in the area, most of whom don‘t have working phones yet. Some of the firemen went home. Ms. Hudak said that they needed to—quote—

“revisit their commitment to FEMA, to firefighting and to the citizens of this country.”

Hey, lady, I think we need to revisit your commitment.

Fifty of the firefighters were sent to Louisiana to stand next to the president during his tour of the afflicted areas.