In the runup to its big Mardi Gras celebration on Fat Tuesday, New Orleans is preparing for parades and crowds — and painful budget cuts. Behind the brass bands and bead throws, the city is confronting one of the worst financial crises in its modern history after years of spending propped up by temporary federal pandemic aid. With revenue lagging and costs locked in, officials say the resulting budget hole will take years to close. Mayor Helena Moreno, who took office in January, inherited a deficit estimated at $222 million in a roughly $1.6 billion operating budget, according to city officials. Late last year, the city had to borrow $125 million from Wall Street simply to make payroll, covering routine expenses and retention bonuses for police promised by the prior administration — a move that triggered downgrades from all three major credit-rating companies. Bloomberg's Aashna Shah joins to discuss. (Source: Bloomberg)