Whadda ya think? Good move for Bush?
http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/09/12/kat...act/index.html
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FEMA director Brown resigns
Bush tours New Orleans devastation
Monday, September 12, 2005; Posted: 3:12 p.m. EDT (19:12 GMT)
President Bush and Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Blanco leave the USS Iwo Jima to tour damaged areas Monday.
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Cleanup efforts intensify in New Orleans (1:39)
Evacuees leaving temporary shelters (1:31)
President returns to storm-battered region (1:37)
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Manage Alerts | What Is This? NEW ORLEANS, Louisiana (CNN) -- Federal Emergency Management Agency Director Mike Brown, under fire over his qualifications and what critics call a bungled response to Hurricane Katrina, resigned Monday, senior administration sources told CNN.
Brown was recalled Friday to Washington and replaced as the point main for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.
Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff named Coast Guard Vice Adm. Thad Allen to head Katrina relief efforts.
A senior administration official said Friday that President Bush approved Chertoff's decision.
Brown's reassignment came amid questions raised in Time magazine about whether his resume was padded to overstate his experience in emergency management. A FEMA official quoted in the report said Brown believes the article is inaccurate.
In New Orleans on Monday, Bush toured the flooded streets, his first up-close visit of the storm-wracked city.
Bush -- whose response to the storm has been criticized along with that of other federal, state and local officials -- rode in a military truck through neighborhoods plagued by stench, mud and high water.
The president's four-truck convoy also traveled through areas clear of water. (Watch video on Bush's return to the coast -- 1:37)
Some homes along Bush's route were marked "0 D 0 A," meaning searchers had found no people inside dead or alive.
A reporter asked Bush about criticism that a racial component was behind the government's slow response to the people left without help after Katrina hit.
"The storm didn't discriminate, and neither will the recovery effort," Bush said. "When those Coast Guard choppers -- many of whom were first on the scene -- were pulling people off roofs, they didn't check the color of a person's skin, they wanted to save lives.
"I can assure people ... that this recovery is going to be comprehensive. The rescue efforts were comprehensive, and the recovery will be comprehensive."
Bush also rejected suggestions that the nation's military was stretched too thin with the Iraq war to deal with the hurricane devastation.
"We've got plenty of troops to do both," the president said.
"It is preposterous to claim that the engagement in Iraq meant there weren't enough troops here, just pure and simple."
Allen briefed Bush aboard the USS Iwo Jima command center, docked on the Mississippi River.
New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin and Louisiana Gov. Kathy Blanco -- who've been critical of the federal response after the storm -- also met with Bush, as did Lt. Gen. Russel Honore -- the top U.S. military leader in the recovery.
Officials said they believe thousands of residents have ignored mandatory evacuation orders despite the fetid floodwaters in many neighborhoods. (Watch video on clearing the city-size cauldron of debris, sewage and mud -- 1:39)
The death toll in New Orleans from the storm remains unknown, but Honore said it may be lower than the mayor's earlier estimate of 10,000.
Bush also is expected to travel Monday to Gulfport, Mississippi, one of the state's hardest hit cities. Katrina slammed ashore the Louisiana coast east of New Orleans on August 29 with 140-mph winds and a 20-foot storm surge. ( Watch the video of Mississippi's ravaged 'war zone' -- 2:03)
The visit is the president's third to the region since the disaster. It occurs as a new poll shows Bush's job approval rating dipping below 40 percent for the first time. (Full story)
EPA: Floodwaters contain lead
Final tests show that floodwater in New Orleans contains high levels of lead and E. coli bacteria, the Environmental Protection Agency said Monday.
The agency issued an advisory last week about the water based on initial test results, EPA press secretary Eryn Witcher said. The samples were taken from six locations in the city on September 3.
The latest EPA advisory warned against direct contact or ingesting the water.
"Also, people can become ill if they have an open cut, wound or abrasion that comes into contact with water contaminated with certain organisms," the agency said. "One may experience fever, redness and swelling at the site of the infection and should see a doctor right away if possible."
Witcher said the level of lead would cause "concern if a child ingests large amounts of the floodwater."
FEMA director - resigned
There are other organizations out there who will appreciate him, hire him, and maybe even pay him more.
but as in all politics it's a question of "what have you done for me lately?" The media witch hunt worked in this case. He's a big boy though, he'll be fine eventually, but it must feel terrible to be viewed as the worst leader in the worst natural disaster in U.S. history. I guess the Liberal Democrats view Governor Blanco as a 'victim' when SHE should be resigning.
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