Daily Briefing: 'A National Disgrace'

•House will pass $10.5b relief package for the Gulf Coast; officials on the ground complain about the administration's response. Head of emergency management in New Orleans: "This is a national emergency. This is a national disgrace. . . We can send massive amounts of aid to tsunami victims, but we can't bail out the city of New Orleans." [ WP , WP , USAT ]

•Experts blame "late evacuation order and insufficient emergency shelter." New Orleans Police Superintendent: "We're in our fifth day and adequate help to quell the situation has not arrived yet." [ NYT , WP , WT ]

•Katrina shows government was unprepared for energy crisis.Bush: "Americans should be prudent in their use of energy. Don't buy gas if you don't need it." [ WSJ , WP ]

•Democrats sayBush's decision to underfund levee fortification left New Orleans vulnerable.McClellan: "Flood control has been a priority of this administration from Day One. This is not a time for finger-pointing or playing politics." [ WP , NYT ]

•Al Qaeda takes credit for London bombings in video broadcast by Al Jazeera; group vows more attacks will come. Suspected bomber: "We are at war, and I am a soldier and now you too will taste the reality of this situation." [ NYT , WP ]

•Gas prices top $6 a gallon in some areas. [ USAT ]

•Republicans and Democrats plan tough quizzing ofRoberts; Democrats may seek delay of confirmation hearings if more documents arrive too late. [ WSJ ]

•More Pentagon employees confirmMohamed Attawas identified before 9/11, but no evidence is found. [ NYT ]

•Gay marriage approved by California Senate. [ LAT , WP ]

•Liberal advocacy groups clamor for attention to blockRoberts. Said one organizer, "Now there is this hurricane. . . We have to do something." [ NYT ,  ]

• Specterseen as unpredictable, maverick force inRoberts' confirmation hearings. [ WP ]

•GovernorsKathleen Blanco(D-La.) andHaley Barbour(R-Miss.) split along party lines when assessing the administration's response to Katrina. [ WSJ ]

•160 law professors announce disapproval ofRoberts. [ WP ]

•Potential '08 candidates hit New Hampshire.Huckabee, Kerry, Vilsack, Bayh, Richardson, Feingold, Clark, Edwards, McCain, Hagel, Allen, Brownbackhave visited. [ WP ]