Posted on 09/29/2004 3:25:56 PM PDT by HAL9000
LITTLE ROCK — Former NATO commander Wesley Clark and former Cabinet secretaries Rodney Slater and James Lee Witt, all from Arkansas, are forming a crisis management dream team.Witt used his experience running the Federal Emergency Management Agency to build a firm to help clients handle large-scale emergencies. The former Yell County judge and director of Arkansas' emergency management office, ran FEMA under the Clinton administration.
Now at his side at James Lee Witt Associates on a part-time basis are Clark, a retired Army general who unsuccessfully ran for the 2004 Democratic nomination for president, and Slater, transportation secretary under Clinton.
The Washington, D.C.-based crisis management consulting firm has about 50 employees and was founded in 2001.
Clark is a vice chairman for the company and will devote his work there to domestic and international security issues. Slater, who grew up in Marianna, also joined the firm last week as a vice chairman and will work on transportation and critical infrastructure issues.
Clark hit the ground running, having already booked a trip to Grand Cayman to offer the company's services for coping with cleanup issues from Hurricane Ivan. The island's legislature agreed to hire the company to help the nation rebuild and prepare for future disasters, said company senior vice president Barry Scanlon.
Clark said the work at Grand Cayman is in line with his general duties at the company.
"I will be working across the spectrum of preparations, assessments, risk assessments, evaluations for natural and man-made disasters and post-disaster mitigation, planning and efforts," Clark said Tuesday.
"He's very well-respected," Scanlon said. "It will help us grow the firm internationally and domestically."
Clark's office said Wednesday that his work with Witt's company is part-time work that won't detract from his time running Wesley K. Clark and Associates LLC, a Little Rock-based strategic advisory and consulting firm. The former presidential candidate will also continue to operate his own political action committee and campaign for Democratic nominee John Kerry through the Nov. 2 election.
Witt's company is expected to open an office in Little Rock next month.
Slater will keep other irons in the fire, too. He will keep his position as partner for Patton Boggs LLP, a Washington, D.C.-based public policy law firm and campaign for Kerry, as well.
"I'm very excited about the opportunity to work with James Lee Witt and General Clark," Slater said. "I know them both to be leaders in their respective areas of interest, and transportation is a critical part of any emrgency management challenge, so I look forward to applying my own expertise there."
Slater said he hopes to find common ground with his work for Patton Boggs and with Witt.
Witt will continue his work as president and chief executive of the International Code Council, a nonprofit organization that develops the codes used to construct residential and commercial buildings.
The Kerry campaign needs to be their first client.
What??? Is some cardboard box somewhere having a crisis? ROFL......last people I'D want managing any CRISIS involving me or mine.
Guess they are not expecting any high profile government positions opening up any time soon.
Who is in charge of the hair spray????
Well, a river rat from Marianna should fit right in with the others in the firm.
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