Bush's reaction a 'disgrace'

2005-09-04 10:33

Washington - Complaints about President George W Bush's reaction to Hurricane Katrina echo past criticisms over crises like the Asian tsunami or the Iraq war.

Doubters are asking whether he reacted too slowly to the catastrophe, sent enough troops to keep order, or relied too much on rosy scenarios spun by senior aides while New Orleans descended into anarchy.

Some lawmakers and local emergency officials have called Washington's initial reaction "a national disgrace" and assailed the Bush administration as having a too-little, too-late response.

On its Internet site, CNN on Friday quoted upbeat assessments of relief efforts by US officials, which contrasted sharply with the grim conditions on the ground.

Two senators have announced hearings into Washington's reaction to the disaster, focused on the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Homeland Security.

The president himself, asked why the world superpower had not acted more quickly and could not get food and water to the needy in one of its major cities said on Friday his administration had reacted quickly.

But Bush, facing poor approval ratings of his handling of the disaster, acknowledged that the critics had a point, saying: "I am satisfied with the response. I'm not satisfied with all the results."

Still, some of the early complaints sounded eerily familiar to what the president faced after the December 26 tsunami that devastated Indian Ocean countries, as well as the aftermath of the fall of Baghdad in April 2003.

Texas ranch

Bush was at his Texas ranch when the tidal wave hit, and although the United States quickly pledged to aid afflicted areas, he did not make public remarks until December 29, when he defended US aid from accusations that Washington was being "stingy."

The US later quieted those charges by mounting a massive relief effort, which included deploying US military ships in the region, and ramping up financial help well beyond its much-mocked original $15m offer.

Bush was also at his Texas ranch while Katrina churned towards the US coast, where it struck Florida on August 25. He did not make public remarks on the storm until August 28.

Some critics have seized on a news photograph of the president palling around with a country singer and posing with a gift guitar on August 30 - even as officials predicted Katrina's death toll would run in the hundreds - to say that the president was not taking the situation seriously enough.

"The bottom line is he needs to appear much more involved, much more hands on, much more in touch with the reality on the ground. He certainly should not be being photographed with a guitar," said a Republican congressional aide.

There have also been parallels with Iraq: The administration has widely been accused of deploying too few troops to contain widespread violence after the fall of Saddam Hussein because of poor planning.

A similar charge has come from officials in New Orleans, which fell prey to widespread looting while some rescue efforts have been repelled by gunfire.

After Bush used his Friday visit to deliver a help-is-on-the-way message, New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin fired back in a radio interview broadcast by CNN that "it's too doggone late!"

"Get off your asses and let's do something and fix the biggest goddamn crisis in the history of this country," he said.

Days after Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco said her state urgently needed as many as 40 000 troops, Bush on Saturday ordered 7 000 soldiers to join some 4 000 already in the region. About 21 000 National Guard were already there.

- AFP