New Orleans' Haitian Appreciation isn't limited to JazzFest. The Crescent City's Carribean Connection was on Mayor Mitch's agenda yesterday, as he traveled with several City department heads to Haiti. In the nation's capital of Port-au-Prince, the New Orleans contingent met up with former President and recently rechristened Demoratic Party Hero Bill Clinton, and officials from the Middle Eastern country of Qatar. The meetup was aimed at officially delivering a $20 million donation from Qatar to Port-au-Prince to assist in rebuilding after the 2010 earthquake.

The lights might be back on, but New Orleans is still picking up after Hurricane Isaac. Workers continue to fan out across the city to collect debris, repair traffic lights, sign posts and suck the muck out of drainage spots. In true Mayor Mitch administration fashion, the City provided a bevy of public works stats on what was damaged, what's been repaired so far, and, naturally, what volume of waste has been picked up. Click through to view:

Mayor Mitch spoke before the cameras for his last pre-hurricane presser: Isaac has arrived. Street closures, downed trees, and power outages are upon us, but  Da' Mayor asks citiziens to be cautious and stay calm. Although Isaac is taking his sweet time, Landrieu believes the recovery phase will occur sooner than later. Read on for updates, and stay with NOLA Defender for your Isaac coverage. 

With a newly strengthened Hurricane Isaac approaching, we're now in hunker down mode. Mayor Mitch once again summoned the gaggle to update what phase of the battle we're at, and specify just where we are (that is, the front lines). He also reminded us that we can get killed in a Category 1 hurricane, and told us about his visit to the Great Wall. Here's today's play-by-play:

There won't be tailgating beforehand or ritual chanting, and even the Mayor probably won't be shaking a tambourine this time. But the city is nevertheless offering the public a chance to come together and make their voice heard over the next month. The Mayor will be at a series of community meetings designed to allow residents a chance to provide input into the City budget process. The first session, held for District B (Uptown, Central City, CBD) is tonight at 6 p.m. at the Jewish Community Center (5432 St. Charles Ave.)

by Mary-Devon Dupuy

ST. ROCH -- City officials and the St. Roch neighborhood broke ground today on their neighborhood’s $3.7 million dollar project to restore the St. Roch Market back to its former glory. While there were no golden shovels or hard hats, the gathered officials released more details about the project, and touted the renovation is the first of many steps to reduce crime in the area and restore the St. Roch neighborhood into an economically viable community.

After sportstalker Colin Cowherd slammed our crime-stricken city and said we shouldn't host the Pro Bowl, Mayor Mitch Landrieu fired back some barbs in Lafayette Square on Wednesday. “How do you spell dumbass in French?” the mayor asked. When he couldn’t get Cowherd’s name right, Mitch settled with calling him “Cow-dung.” Watch the video after the jump.

Need proof that The Times-Picayune's bombshell announcement that they're scaling back their print schedule and cutting staff is big news to this town? It prompted da Mayor to use the words "fine" and "journalists" in the same sentence. Mayor Mitch weighed in on da Paper's plans this afternoon, talking about his desire to talk with the new bosses to "discuss how we can help the newspaper grow and not diminish," and, since it's still the mayor, his first job as a paperboy. Read the whole statement below:

TREME - The time has come once again for Mayor Mitch to give a major speech. Today's oratory is designed to update the citizens on the State of the City. NoDef is at the Mahalia Jackson Theatre for the speech, and will be taking stock of the Mayor's words, who's there (and who's not there) and, of course, the stagecraft.

Updated 5::20 p.m.

It's time to put away the tambourine. Amid the Zone Out, the Curious Case of the Missing Councilmembers and the Stadium Saga, Mayor Mitch has found himself out of the driver's seat of local politics for the first time since he took office over the past couple of months. But, tomorrow, he'll attempt to reclaim the wheel from the stage of the Mahalia Jackson Theatre.