Posted on 01/17/2006 12:51:03 PM PST by Ellesu
GULFPORT, Miss. - Federal programs and funds to help the Gulf Coast recover from Hurricane Katrina do not go far enough to help, according to lawmakers touring the battered region Tuesday.
"The tools we have in our toolbox are not effective," said Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., on a flight to Gulfport, Miss., where blue-tarped roof dotted the city's houses. She was with a delegation of senators who also planned to tour disaster sites in the New Orleans area. "We need a new tool."
Though the federal government has set aside nearly $70 billion for emergency relief and long-term recovery plans, Landrieu said massive reforms at the Federal Emergency Management Agency, which distributes disaster relief, and the Army Corps of Engineers, which oversees the New Orleans levees that were breached by the storm's surge, also are necessary. And she called on Congress to approve a federally aided regional redevelopment program like the one proposed by Rep. Richard Baker, R-La.
At a Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs hearing here, Donald Powell, the federal official coordinating government plans to rebuild the Gulf Coast, said he has limited authority to spur the region's long-term recovery. He said he relies on "the power of persuasion" to enact progress.
"Would it be easier to do your job if you had more specific authority over the allocation of resources and personnel?" asked Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, who chaired the hearing.
"At times, yes, quite frankly," Powell responded. But, he added, "To date the cooperation is extraordinary."
Several senators said they were troubled by Powell's limitations. Powell, the former Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. chairman who was tapped in November for the recovery post, is tasked with for dealing with plans by Congress, state and local governments, and private businesses to rebuild the region.
More than a half-dozen senators visited the region to examine what more Congress needs to do, four months after the Aug. 29 storm.
"The devastation is so widespread that a sustained federal commitment is going to be necessary," Collins said in an earlier interview. "I think Congress realizes that, but there's also a growing concern about whether the money is well spent."
So far, Congress has approved $67 billion for the Gulf Coast, and President Bush has called for an additional $1.5 billion to strengthen New Orleans levees. But Collins said hard-hit areas - including Gulfport, Miss., and St. Bernard Parish in Louisiana - need more federal resources and attention.
Senators will visit both of those places - nearly obliterated by Hurricane Katrina's high winds and flood waters on Aug. 29 - and tour parts of New Orleans while inspecting progress on rebuilding its levees. They also plan to conduct a hearing on recovery efforts.
Democrats, too, are watching how Congress will pay for what they called continued necessary assistance to the Gulf Coast amid a rising deficit and other high-cost expenses, including the war in Iraq.
"This is really a catastrophe of enormous proportions, and I don't think we appropriated nearly enough to help," Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif., said last week after reviewing damage in the New Orleans area. She is calling for Congress to repeal Bush's tax cuts to help pay for rebuilding costs.
Last month, Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, the former chairman of the Republican National Committee, chastised Congress for failing to approve emergency funding, which he said has stalled transportation, school and housing projects.
In prepared testimony for a Senate hearing in Gulfport on Tuesday, the Bush administration's rebuilding czar outlined two top priorities for Mississippi: debris removal and temporary housing for evacuees.
Mississippi has cleaned up 27 million cubic yards of debris - about two-thirds of the total, said Donald Powell, the federal Gulf Coast coordinator. He estimated that Hancock, Harrison and Jackson counties in Mississippi were left with more debris after Katrina than totals after Hurricane Andrew in 1992 and the World Trade Center from the 2001 terror attacks combined.
Powell also estimated that fewer than 2,000 evacuated families remain in Mississippi hotels, and that 280,000 state residents have received transitional housing assistance.
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On the Net:
Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee: http://hsgac.senate.gov/
"The tools we have in our toolbox are not effective," said Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La
Landrieu is a tool ping
Maybe it would be if you and your corrupt cronies stoled less Mary.
You go Gimmee Girl!
Nagin's a tool!
It will not be enough until she has gold plated underwear.
It's never enough. It's George Bush's fault that the exact replica of New Orleans that the Clinton administration had in the warehouse was destroyed by tax cuts for the rich.
How about this, pay for it your damn selves!
Mary Landrieu, offering to fleece the taxpayer for more votes.
:)
"We need a new tool."
People power, market forces, non-government solutions, private industry, common sense, wood, metal, cement and spirit.
Bout all you need - a little less of you and a little more of them Mary.
Meanwhile half the state sits slack jawed in front of a video poker machine.
Now stop being so close minded, PL. How do you expect them to keep the entitlement mentality in New Orleans? I tell you, sir, that you are being ridiculous!
:) HA!
Gold plated underwear. I like it, msn.
Well, maybe Louisiana should just get a job.
I tend to agree with her. The tools they have now are our tax dollars. I too would like to see them use something besides a handout. Something like a free market and hard work to encourage investment sound good to me.
"Sen. Landrieu Says Katrina Aid Not Enough"
She is not of the Body. The peace and contentment of Landrieu is not upon her.
Sen. Landrieu reminds me of Miss Piggy.
A bad craftsman always blames his or her tools.
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