NEWS RELEASE: Guess Who's Back (Us, too)

NEW ORLEANS -- Someday soon, Kenya Smith might just run this place.

"I think it's possible," said the recently returned aide to Mayor Ray Nagin. "I mean, the way this shit is going, I could be wearing some big shoes. Big, Ray-sized shoes, if you see what I'm saying."

Many in the city do. Or rather, they've heard, been mystified, and slowly comprehended the facts. Famous for his soft touch with a credit card and his masterful implementation of the city's 311 hotline ("Do you think I'm hiding people?" he once asked a councilperson), Smith seems destined to run things in the last 200 days of the history-making administration. Fortunately, he's well-rested.

"What have I been doing? Studying. Well, I ran for Congress, of course."

Of course. Smith's strangely low-key run at William Jefferson's seat left him with a sizable period of time to reflect on the city's recovery and rebirth. Back in the saddle, he's not short on ideas.

"Basically, put me back in the saddle. That's number one on the list. We need to get back to a 2007, 2008 state-of-mind, back before all this contract hubbub and FBI B.S. I mean, there's a lot of work to do, a lot of lunch to eat, a lot of interim-appointees to groom. I'm back, and I'm ready to hit the Council chambers and do what I do."

The mayor agrees.

"Kenya Smith is like a breath of familiar air in this place. We know what we're gonna get with Kenya--good old fashioned combativeness and great taste in food. Now, all those guys up in Baton Rouge [where Smith served as the mayor's legislative liason], they may not remember him. But they'll get to know him soon enough. We've got 200 days to go, and Kenya's gonna get his brand out there. We welcome him back."

Smith says he appreciates the mayor's support.

"Not much has changed, really. Yeah, Blakely's gone. Other than that, my key code still works. Hell, most of my stuff is still right where I left it. Let's get lunch."