Posted on 09/07/2005 9:41:15 AM PDT by Pokey78
WASHINGTON — The top Senate Democrat today called for an investigation into the way the government dealt with Hurricane Katrina, including whether President Bush's Texas vacation interfered with the response. Republican chairmen pledged to focus on recovery now and investigate later.
In a letter to the Senate's Homeland Security Committee chairwoman, Minority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada pressed for a wide-ranging investigation and answers to several questions, including: "How much time did the president spend dealing with this emerging crisis while he was on vacation? Did the fact that he was outside of Washington, D.C., have any effect on the federal government's response?"
The letter was obtained by the Associated Press.
Other Democrats also called for investigations and clamored for President Bush to fire Michael Brown, the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency that has been widely vilified for its reaction to the hurricane and the deadly aftermath.
Separately, Bush was asking Congress for as much as $50 billion in immediate aid for the Hurricane Katrina catastrophe, and the White House indicated more money eventually would be needed.
In the first government estimate of Katrina's economic impact, the bipartisan Congressional Budget Office said the damage seemed likely to reduce employment by 400,000 in coming months and to trim economic growth by as much as a full percentage point in the second half of the year. The impact should be temporary, with gasoline prices declining and consumer spending rebounding, said the assessment obtained by The Associated Press.
At the White House, press secretary Scott McClellan said the administration was acting quickly on an emergency supplemental measure for Katrina efforts because a $10.5 billion down payment approved last week "is being spent more quickly than we even anticipated."
Administration officials said the second request could be close to $50 billion and would be sent to Capitol Hill later Wednesday. Bush is expected to return to the region, but the White House would not say when. Separately, first lady Laura Bush planned to travel to Mississippi on Thursday, the same day Vice President Dick Cheney heads to the Gulf states.
Bush was chairing a meeting to hear an update from Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt and others about getting government benefits, such as food stamps, health care and unemployment benefits, to hurricane victims.
Buffeted by criticism of the Republican administration, GOP Senate chairmen stood in unison and announced that Congress first would open hearings on how to help the Gulf Coast recover from the disaster, and then later examine the response.
"Our role in the United States Senate will be, yes, to investigate and provide appropriate oversight, but also to lower barriers for the recovery and the rebuilding and the economic growth of the Gulf states," said Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist, R-Tenn.
Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Chairman Susan Collins, the senator whom Reid's letter was addressed to, said her panel would open hearings on "what should we be doing right now." Sen. Pete Domenici, R-N.M., said that as chairman of the energy and water subcommittee, he could convene a panel this week to provide the Army Corps of Engineers with the money it needs to help the region recover.
But he recommended that the White House assign another agency, perhaps the Office of Management and Budget, to coordinate Congress' Katrina hearings and recovery efforts.
"We can have all the hearings and ideas we want, but we're going to be running in each other's way pretty soon, as are the Cabinet members," Domenici said.
The House today was expected to pass two Katrina-related bills: One would allow the secretary of education to waive the current rule that recipients of Pell Grants for low-income students must repay those grants when they are forced to withdraw from classes due to natural disasters.
The other would allow circuit, district and bankruptcy courts to conduct special sessions outside their geographic boundaries when they are unable to meet because of emergency conditions.
Even as they called for investigations of the government's response, several Democratic senators said it was already clear that Brown, the FEMA director, should go.
Bush should have appointed a director with more experience, said Hillary Rodham Clinton on CBS' "The Early Show."
Clinton, who also appeared on ABC and NBC Wednesday, urged the appointment of an independent investigative panel along the lines of the Sept. 11 commission.
She bristled when asked about Republican accusations that she was trying to capitalize on a natural disaster to help her political career.
"You know, the questions that have been raised about the competence and the effectiveness of this administration certainly are not limited to what's happened with Katrina," she said on NBC's "Today." "And every time anyone raises any kind of legitimate criticism and asks questions, they're attacked."
Reid said in his letter that Collins' panel should pursue answers to several questions. Among them, why Bush and administration officials said no one anticipated the breach of the levees despite public studies and warnings, whether budget cuts thwarted the Army Corps of Engineers and whether a sufficient number of troops were dispatched promptly. Reid also asked whether FEMA was hurt because it was stripped of Cabinet-level status and folded into the Homeland Security Department.
"It appears that FEMA suffered from serious systemic failures in virtually every aspect of its response to Katrina," Reid wrote.
Harry Reid fans should be encouraged by this news - It proves the stroke has had no effect on his reasoning skills.
(To Senator Reid: That's NOT a compliment.)
Actually they are third. City or County, State then Feds
'The sky is falling and you know whose fault it is. Only a dem admin. is fit to handle this country's problems. Elect Hill at once.' This is the message we'll hear for the next three years. Nonstop.
Yes, they were, and yes, they are (idiots). Guess idiots like Senator Reid think that the President of the United States hangs a "do not disturb" sign on his door while on vacation, and unplugs his phone. If I could speak to Reid, I'd say, "here's your sign". Stupid stupid stupid.
Just keep it up Harry, and watch your party sink further into irrelevance. The fact is, the majority of Americans don't think anybody in your party would have done any better.
The President on vacation is still working harder than most of the population, even on the weekends. It's 24/7/365, regardless of where he is.
Harry read the polling numbers from their sympathetic polling units? Or did he just get the internal polls that are far more accurate then media polls? My guess is both.
See, the MSM polls are supposed to create a certain image favorable to Dem. the internal polls are to assess reality.
The MSM polls have failed them despite, I'm sure, their best efforts. The Internal polls are giving them even worst news.
So now the Dems already bloodied, are jumping off the cliff again.
Investigate his vacation Harry? Why? So the American people can learn just how much harder he works on vacation then even in D.C.? Yeah, that'll do you guys a world of good.
Moron. I demand psych tests before they can play Senators. We clearly have people better suited to the mental wards than Capitol Hill.
Yes! And Rush is doing yeoman's work. When he mentioned Dingy Harry's press release, oops! letter, he saw it as a sign that the Dems are really getting demented since that poll showed only 13% blame Bush. Back to the old drawing-and-quartering board, I guess.
Well last night, O'Bloviator suggested that President Bush should have just MOVED IN and taken over Louisiana, because everybody could see that Blanko and Nagin were nitwits.
There are plenty of nitwits, O'. How far shall we go with this, eh?
Gee, I'm not sure -- Reid's such a common name. Maybe you could e-mail him and ask him. :-) (Or e-mail Rush!)
How come not one Democrat shortened their vacations to come to New Orleans and urge evacuations - before Katrina hit ??
How come Bill and Hillary didn't shorten their luxury Kaua'i vacation ( where Clinton golfed with the Bush hating Pierce Brosnan ),
to come to New Orleans and go through the city urging everyone to evacuate ?
How come Bill and Hillary didn't make radio and tv PSA's urging everyone to evacuate ?
How come Al Sharpton didn't leave the arms of Cindy Sheehan and come 6 hours east-well it's probably shorter when you're going 110mph and grab his beloved bullhorn and go through the projects urging everyone to leave ?
How come Jesse Jackson didn't interrupt his Death to America tour with Hugo Chavez and do likewise ?
How come every member of the Congressional Black Caucus didn't go to New Orleans to urge evacuation ?
When Ted Kennedy gave the Democrat's response to President Bush's Saturday radio address- why didn't he urge evacuation ??
On Saturday, August 27 only President Bush and the Weather Channel urged evacuation.
Not one word from any Democrat-most of whom were elswhere- either on vacation or undermining America.
O'Reilly said (more than once) that the breach of the levee constituted a national security issue, giving Bush the right to act directly. Floored me.
Yes, and then the Prez would be impeached. How does the Senior nitwit over at FOX think impeachment proceedings of a competant President would aid the nation?
O'Reilly's just realized that taking the line the incompetant nitwits of NO and LA aren't at fault, that they aren't going to get a pass, that he scewed up AGAIN, by choosing to join the MSM instead of staying by the President's side, so he's desperately bailing water for a way to put this on the President's head.
He's no better than Chris Matthews, he only has the luxury of a wider audience because he's on FOX with the best timeslot.
When the heck is Texas going to phone service????
Harry, the President doesn't actually take a vacation. He's working the whole time. He justs moves the White House to Texas for a few weeks to get away from a##holes like you.
The main responsibility and authority for operational aspects of evacuation in Orleans Parish lies with the Office of Emergency Preparedness (OEP) within the Chief Administrative Office of the City. The authority to make the final decisions related to an evacuation rests with the Mayor of New Orleans. Evacuation decisions are made in coordination with OEP staff, other City directors, and members of the Southeast Louisiana Hurricane Task Force, made up of top elected officials in all the Southeast Parishes and municipalities and the Louisiana Department of Transportation and Development (LaDOTD). The private and public economic costs of closing an entire geographic [Page 144] area for several days are significant, so the decision to evacuate has to be carefully considered, based on the severity of the storm, the likely storm path, and the time required to prepare and move citizens away from the city. Evacuation decisions and status updates are broadcast on the City's cable access channel and communicated to all media.
No, the wind gust from W's leaf blower is what caused Katrina to veer east at the last minute and hit Mississippi instead of hitting New Orleans head on. Who knows how much worse the devastation would have been, but does anyone thank Bush? No!
LOL
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