I talked to General Downer about some of the funding about the National Guard and some of the civil defense workers, the firefighters, the police officers, and the way that FEMA is making them spend that money. We have got a problem there.

The condition in New Orleans was changing every day. I said, why don't we appropriate another $10 billion, come back and look at the situation, and do another $10 billion every week, or every 10 days?

The Women of the Storm made a big difference for me, because it really put some real-life faces with the situation, and not just politicians.

Trust me, I'm going to find out where the money has gone and how it has been spent, and see if we can't get it down there quicker to let that rebuilding start.

Housing wealth - the net equity held by households, consisting of the value of their homes minus their mortgage debt - is the most important source of wealth for all but those at the very top.

At primary school, we would pick up plastic petals on the way home to make flowers. Now you might call it child labour, but we did it for pocket money.

I am sure that no man can derive more pleasure from money or power than I do from seeing a pair of basketball goals in some out of the way place.

When there wasn't any money involved, for all intents and purposes, nobody gave a damn. But now the land, supposedly worthless, is seen for what it really is: an incredibly valuable asset.