It had the feeling of an old-fashioned church revival.

Having his statements punctuated with “Amens,” Rep. Lynn Westmoreland returned to Fayetteville to update residents about his first year in Congress.

“It’s been an eye-opening experience,” he told a room of more than 100 citizens at the Fayette County Administrative Complex.

Westmoreland started off by defending the Bush administration’s response to Hurricane Katrina, and placed a lot of the blame on New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin, who he said instructed Red Cross workers not to give food and water to evacuees at the Superdome. Westmoreland made national headlines when he was one of 11 representatives to vote against $52 billion in immediate need to victims of the powerful storms.

“I was given nine line items for how this money would be spent,” he said.

Many of the residents asked the congressman for his stance on replacing the federal income tax with a “fair tax.” Westmoreland said he was one of the original sponsors of the bill, and complimented Rep. John Linder for his efforts in pushing the bill.

But he deflated many of the residents’ hopes when he said the bill probably would not be voted on by the full House until powerful House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Bill Thomas of California leaves office.

The congressman also said one of the most important issues facing the legislative body this year is immigration.

“We have a legal immigration policy. I think we need to seal the border and determine who’s here legally,” he said.

Westmoreland also addressed the ongoing investigation into influential lobbyist Jack Abramoff’s influence peddling scandal.

“I’ve never met the man, but I’m sure I’ve done something wrong,” he added.

The main problem is that campaign finance reform laws are too complicated and Westmoreland has now adopted the approach of getting a legal written opinion on any finance issues. The congressman also defended embattled Majority Leader Tom DeLay who he called an “honorable man.”

“He hasn’t done anything that other Democrats and Republicans haven’t done,” he added.

During the next year, it’s crucial that “Republicans start acting like Republicans” and show some leadership. Westmoreland hopes to see more of the small-government agenda get passed, but understands those hopes may not come to pass since it’s an election year.

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