United by Katrina,
Divided by Assessment

Govs. Kathleen Blanco and Haley Barbour are now forever bound by Hurricane Katrina, but divided by their assessment of the federal government's response.

Ms. Blanco, a Louisiana Democrat, and Mr. Barbour, a Mississippi Republican, are both grappling with challenges they could never have expected upon taking office in recent years. Ms. Blanco is a former teacher; Mr. Barbour a lawyer, lobbyist and political operative.

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Now both regularly appear on national television in dusty clothes, exhausted and overwhelmed by the catastrophic damage caused when Katrina crashed into their shared stretch of Gulf shoreline. But their assessments of the reaction of the Bush administration to the disaster are starkly different.

Ms. Blanco's office has been critical of the federal government's response amid heart-breaking images of stranded families in New Orleans. Yesterday, she appealed to President Bush to send soldiers to the Big Easy so police and national guardsmen can patrol the streets. "Time is of the essence," she said.

Mr. Barbour, in contrast, has strongly defended the Bush administration, saying federal help was in the state immediately after Katrina blew out. When pressed with questions about whether the federal response has been inadequate, he asked: "Is this an argument or an interview?"

Both governors will have a chance to speak with the president directly today when Mr. Bush is scheduled to join them, as well as Republican Gov. Bob Riley of Alabama, on tours of the affected areas. Of the three states hit by Katrina at its powerful phase, Alabama suffered least.

The stature of state or local officials can soar from effective handling of a massive crisis, as evident from the experience of New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. But no fellow governor would trade places with Ms. Blanco or Mr. Barbour.

The scale of their governing challenges is "incomprehensible," says Republican Gov. Mark Sanford of South Carolina. "They are both good at processing that amount of information. But it is unimaginable how much information is coming at them. When you are dealing with true life-and-death situations, just endurance and sleep deprivation become issues."

Ms. Blanco worked her way up to the governor's office, serving first in the Louisiana House of Representatives and then two terms as lieutenant governor. She was considered the underdog in a run-off race in November 2003 against Republican Bobby Jindal, a charismatic newcomer to politics. She won 52% of the vote and became the state's first female governor.

Since then, Ms. Blanco has been credited with running a clean administration in a state where political corruption is legendary. She has recruited new business and traveled to Cuba to protect Louisiana's rice exports to that nation.

The Democratic governor tangled with Bush administration officials over emergency help even before Katrina hit. Louisiana sought relief from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for damage caused by Tropical Storm Cindy in July. Despite intervention by the state's U.S. senators and House members, FEMA hadn't responded to that request when Katrina came crashing through.

Mr. Barbour's political pedigree and track record suggest he might have had more success with such a request. He has long been a Washington insider, close to the president, powerful lawmakers and key aides on Capitol Hill and the White House. Fortune magazine once declared Barbour Griffith & Rogers, which Mr. Barbour founded, the top lobbying firm in Washington. In 2003 he launched a well-financed campaign against incumbent Democrat Gov. Ronnie Musgrove and won with 53% of the vote.

Mr. Barbour is only the second Republican governor elected in Mississippi since Reconstruction. After taking office, he pushed through a Democratic legislature a conservative agenda that has delighted party activists and pushed his name onto the list of potential 2008 White House contenders. His initiatives include limiting jury awards and passing four antiabortion rights measures in 2004 alone. Americans United for Life, an antiabortion group, deemed Mississippi "the safest place in America for an unborn child."

But a cost-saving proposal that would have eliminated the eligibility of about 65,000 individuals for Medicaid services energized opponents. A judge blocked Mr. Barbour from shrinking the rolls. Ultimately, the plan was dropped while the Legislature passed a measure that limited to five the number of prescription drugs most Medicaid recipients could receive -- only two of which could be name brands.

Mississippi's problems from Katrina are severe, but not nearly as complex as those in Louisiana. New Orleans survived Katrina's winds and rain, only to succumb to flood waters caused by breaks in levees around the city. But for both states, recovery could take years.

In times of crisis, people initially look to elected officials "with respect and hope and trust" in the early days, says Alan Secrest, a Democratic pollster. But he adds that public scrutiny of Ms. Blanco and Mr. Barbour will grow tougher over time as constituents continue to struggle with the effects of the disaster.

Write to Jeanne Cummings at jeanne.cummings@wsj.com

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