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===2006 mayoral bid===
===2006 mayoral bid===
In 2005, Greater New Orleans was devastated by [[Hurricane Katrina]] and related levee failures. The majority of the city was still in ruins and the majority of the population still living elsewhere in early 2006, for what many felt was the most important election in the city's history. Couhig and Peggy Wilson, a former member of the New Orleans City Council, were the two Republican candidates for mayor. His campaign started with television ads mocking the perceived leading candidates, [[Mitch Landrieu]], Ron Forman, and incumbent Mayor Ray Nagin. In televised debates prior to the nonpartisan blanket primary, Couhig's combative style attracted attention. MSNBC pundit [[Chris Matthews]] declared Couhig the "absolute winner" of the pre-primary debate.
In 2005, Greater New Orleans was devastated by [[Hurricane Katrina]] and related levee failures. The majority of the city was still in ruins and the majority of the population still living elsewhere in early 2006, for what many felt was the most important election in the city's history. Couhig and [[Peggy Wilson (Louisiana politician)|Peggy Wilson]], a former member of the New Orleans City Council, were the two Republican candidates for mayor. His campaign started with television ads mocking the perceived leading candidates, [[Mitch Landrieu]], Ron Forman, and incumbent Mayor Clarence Ray Nagin. In televised debates prior to the nonpartisan blanket primary, Couhig's combative style attracted attention. MSNBC pundit [[Chris Matthews]] declared Couhig the "absolute winner" of the pre-primary debate.
Couhig said that New Orleans residents should accent "self-reliance" in the post-Katrina rebuilding, rather than a sense of "entitlement". Couhig criticized Nagin for supposedly "sugar-coating" the city's woes. He claimed that Nagin was "reaping short-term political gains at the expense of the city's long-term best interests." Couhig said that his opponents were promoting a "fantasy" that the city can continue operating on a budget meant for nearly half a million people when fewer than half that many persons remained in New Orleans in the spring of 2006. Couhig said that the city could not sustain basic services in sparsely populated areas. He also chided Nagin for his use of the term "Chocolate City." He urged Nagin, who had supported the 2003 Republican gubernatorial candidate [[Bobby Jindal]] along with other Republican candidates, to "stop pandering for political gain."
Couhig said that New Orleans residents should accent "self-reliance" in the post-Katrina rebuilding, rather than a sense of "entitlement". Couhig criticized Nagin for supposedly "sugar-coating" the city's woes. He claimed that Nagin was "reaping short-term political gains at the expense of the city's long-term best interests." Couhig said that his opponents were promoting a "fantasy" that the city can continue operating on a budget meant for nearly half a million people when fewer than half that many persons remained in New Orleans in the spring of 2006. Couhig said that the city could not sustain basic services in sparsely populated areas. He also chided Nagin for his use of the term "Chocolate City." He urged Nagin, who had supported the 2003 Republican gubernatorial candidate [[Bobby Jindal]] along with other Republican candidates, to "stop pandering for political gain."