On Tuesday night, House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi confronted President George W. Bush about Michael Brown, the director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. Pelosi called on Bush to dismiss Brown — the man appointed to take charge
of swift responses to natural and man-made disasters. When asked for the president's response, Pelosi told the The Associated Press that he had "thanked me for my suggestion."
Later that evening, internal FEMA documents, obtained by the AP, revealed that Brown waited nearly five hours after Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast before asking his boss, Homeland Security Secretary Mike Chertoff, for assistance — the nation's first attempt at a response to what is being called the worst natural disaster to strike the U.S..
According to the wire service, Katrina raged for five hours before Brown petitioned Chertoff with his first request for aid: 1,000 Homeland Security workers who'd be dispatched to the region two days later to lend their support to localized rescue efforts and "convey a positive image of disaster operations to government officials, community organizations and the general public." He also suggested that an additional 2,000 personnel be sent over the course of the following week.
Before Brown issued his request on August 29, FEMA had placed smaller rescue and communications teams across the area, the AP reports. In his memo to Chertoff, Brown characterized Katrina as a "near catastrophic event," though the correspondence failed to convey a more immediate or imperative need for government action. Many have said the federal response to the disaster was insufficient and far too late .
According to Homeland Security spokesperson Russ Knocke, Brown's intention was to offer support to potential victims in the aftermath, rather than assist in the rescuing of victims or the recovery of bodies. "There will be plenty of time to assess what worked and what didn't work," Knocke told the AP. "Clearly there will be time for blame to be assigned and to learn from some of the successful efforts."
Before his request to Chertoff, Brown discouraged local fire and rescue operations outside of the affected states — Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi — from sending trucks and emergency workers into the disaster zone unless a specific request for help was issued by state or local governments, The Associated Press reports.
"The people of the Gulf region were struck by two disasters. First was the hurricane and then, the failure of the federal government in time of great need," Pelosi told the press. "The buck stops at the president's desk. The president said he's going to lead the investigation into what went wrong. He needs to look only in the mirror."
Pelosi's call for Brown's dismissal was echoed by several senators Tuesday night. Senator Barbara Mikulski, a Democrat from Maryland, told reporters Brown should step down quietly.
Senator Trent Lott, a Republican from Mississippi, urged lawmakers to focus their efforts on recovery before launching inquisitions, saying, "There'll be a time for that. Let's fix the problems that we've got to deal with now."
Several Democratic senators expressed that an independent commission, much like the one assembled following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks should be appointed to review the procedures followed and decisions made in Katrina's aftermath.
Meanwhile, CNN reports that Republican leaders have scrapped a House hearing to evaluate the response to Katrina, with plans to hold what was described by Majority Leader Tom DeLay as a "congressional review" by a joint House and Senate panel at a later date.
— Chris Harris
"The president said he's going to lead the investigation into what went wrong. He needs to look only in the mirror." — House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi
of swift responses to natural and man-made disasters. When asked for the president's response, Pelosi told the The Associated Press that he had "thanked me for my suggestion."
Later that evening, internal FEMA documents, obtained by the AP, revealed that Brown waited nearly five hours after Hurricane Katrina struck the Gulf Coast before asking his boss, Homeland Security Secretary Mike Chertoff, for assistance — the nation's first attempt at a response to what is being called the worst natural disaster to strike the U.S..
According to the wire service, Katrina raged for five hours before Brown petitioned Chertoff with his first request for aid: 1,000 Homeland Security workers who'd be dispatched to the region two days later to lend their support to localized rescue efforts and "convey a positive image of disaster operations to government officials, community organizations and the general public." He also suggested that an additional 2,000 personnel be sent over the course of the following week.
Before Brown issued his request on August 29, FEMA had placed smaller rescue and communications teams across the area, the AP reports. In his memo to Chertoff, Brown characterized Katrina as a "near catastrophic event," though the correspondence failed to convey a more immediate or imperative need for government action. Many have said the federal response to the disaster was insufficient and far too late .
According to Homeland Security spokesperson Russ Knocke, Brown's intention was to offer support to potential victims in the aftermath, rather than assist in the rescuing of victims or the recovery of bodies. "There will be plenty of time to assess what worked and what didn't work," Knocke told the AP. "Clearly there will be time for blame to be assigned and to learn from some of the successful efforts."
Before his request to Chertoff, Brown discouraged local fire and rescue operations outside of the affected states — Louisiana, Alabama and Mississippi — from sending trucks and emergency workers into the disaster zone unless a specific request for help was issued by state or local governments, The Associated Press reports.
"The people of the Gulf region were struck by two disasters. First was the hurricane and then, the failure of the federal government in time of great need," Pelosi told the press. "The buck stops at the president's desk. The president said he's going to lead the investigation into what went wrong. He needs to look only in the mirror."
Pelosi's call for Brown's dismissal was echoed by several senators Tuesday night. Senator Barbara Mikulski, a Democrat from Maryland, told reporters Brown should step down quietly.
Senator Trent Lott, a Republican from Mississippi, urged lawmakers to focus their efforts on recovery before launching inquisitions, saying, "There'll be a time for that. Let's fix the problems that we've got to deal with now."
Several Democratic senators expressed that an independent commission, much like the one assembled following the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks should be appointed to review the procedures followed and decisions made in Katrina's aftermath.
Meanwhile, CNN reports that Republican leaders have scrapped a House hearing to evaluate the response to Katrina, with plans to hold what was described by Majority Leader Tom DeLay as a "congressional review" by a joint House and Senate panel at a later date.
— Chris Harris
"The president said he's going to lead the investigation into what went wrong. He needs to look only in the mirror." — House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi
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