Candor is the only way I know how to do it. I'm way too old to change. At the end of the day, I believe the truth is stronger than any lie that's out there.

The people of our city are holding on by a thread. Time has run out. Can we survive another night? And who can we depend on? Only God knows.

It's time for us to come together. It's time for us to rebuild New Orleans - the one that should be a chocolate New Orleans. This city will be a majority African American city. It's the way God wants it to be. You can't have New Orleans no other way. It wouldn't be New Orleans.

The reality is this city will not be the same for a while, ... We're not saying bring New Orleans back today.