Is it your view that the plans for this storm, and its implementation, were adequate? Does it bother you at all, that those without cars, were not offered a way out of Dodge with public transportation prior to the door closing? Is that compassionate? Is it competent that large refugee camps were not put in motion as soon as it appeared that a cat 5 storm was headed to NO? Of course if it remained a Cat 5 and had not moved east, one would not have needed them except as a cemetary. Is it competent that after the storm passed, there were not plans put immediately in place to evacuate those left in NO? Maybe I am just too demanding. Maybe I should have been governor of Louisiana. If I had, things would have evolved differently. I would have had Bush on speed dial. Just read my posts over the past four days.
And it was just the reverse; Bush had to call THEM, FGS.
Prairie Chapel Ranch
Crawford, Texas
In Focus: Iraq
11:31 A.M. CDT
THE PRESIDENT: This morning I spoke with FEMA Undersecretary Mike Brown and emergency management teams not only at the federal level but at the state level about the -- Hurricane Katrina. I've also spoken to Governor Blanco of Louisiana, Governor Barbour of Mississippi, Governor Bush of Florida, and Governor Riley of Alabama. I want to thank all the folks at the federal level and the state level and the local level who have taken this storm seriously. I appreciate the efforts of the governors to prepare their citizenry for this upcoming storm.
Yesterday, I signed a disaster declaration for the state of Louisiana, and this morning I signed a disaster declaration for the state of Mississippi. These declarations will allow federal agencies to coordinate all disaster relief efforts with state and local officials. We will do everything in our power to help the people in the communities affected by this storm.
Hurricane Katrina is now designated a category five hurricane. We cannot stress enough the danger this hurricane poses to Gulf Coast communities. I urge all citizens to put their own safety and the safety of their families first by moving to safe ground. Please listen carefully to instructions provided by state and local officials.
No offense, but I don't have time to read your posts over the last four days, but I will say this: what refugee camps could possibly be set up that wouldn't have been completely destroyed by the hurricane? In essence, the Superdome and the other 10 emergency shelters *were* the refugee camps, and with the whole city under water, that's about as far as it could go anyway. If you mean outside of New Orleans, well, FEMA was "on the line" well before the storm hit. I remember the director clearly stating "we are ready to handle the situation, whatever it is." Now I didn't take that to mean "everything will be okay," of course, but it did tell me that they did have everything in place to respond, whatever that was. And they are still saying that. So what gives with blaming it all on the city?