This really shocked me! I just KNEW they would endorse McCain or not endorse at all - but I WAS WRONG!!! :applause:
A president must navigate by an inner compass. Mr. Obama's steadiness and his ability to weather political storms bespeak self-confidence and a sureness of purpose. We are riding out a tempest, and he is, quite simply, even-keeled. He possesses expertise that should endear him to the New Orleans area.
He knows cities -- historic cities, gritty cities. He came by his knowledge pounding the streets of Chicago's South Side as an organizer, grappling with the needs of poor people. For our own great and complex city, we could use a national leader who appreciates that we are more than a sentimental memory of a college romp on Bourbon Street; that we are a culturally rich American treasure, filled with resilient citizens and worth protecting from the encroaching forces of nature.
As the child of a black father and a white mother, Barack Obama also understands the diversity that is the foundation of our area's culture. As an African-American man from a modest background, he understands and can speak to the plight of underprivileged black youth. He would have a large audience here.
Sen. Obama knows what it means to be an underdog. That should draw him to help in the recovery of metro New Orleans, the underdog city. When he spoke at Tulane University last February, he gained a firsthand understanding of the rebirth of our school system. He also spoke of the need to restructure FEMA and protect our area from future storms.
"I promise you that when I'm in the White House I will commit myself every day to keeping up Washington's end of this trust, and I will make it clear to members of my administration that their responsibilities don't end in places like the Ninth Ward -- they begin there," he said.
More at
http://blog.nola.com/editorials/2008/10/barack_obama_for_president.html 
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