Doug Henwood
New York Post - September 7, 2005
FEMA FOOL SAT ON HIS HANDS By DOUGLAS SIMPSON, TED BRIDIS and IAN BISHOP
The head of FEMA waited a mind-boggling five hours after Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf before even contacting his boss about sending personnel to the area - then suggested workers be allowed two days to get to the ravaged region, shocking internal documents reveal.
One stunning Aug. 29 memo - sent from embattled Federal Emergency Management chief Michael Brown to Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff - called killer Katrina a "near-catastrophic event," but otherwise lacked any other urgent language underlining the potential magnitude of the disaster.
Brown then politely ended his memo with: "Thank you for your consideration in helping us to meet our responsibilities."
In another note sent later to FEMA workers, Brown said one of their duties would essentially be to make the agency look good.
"Convey a positive image of disaster operations to government officials, community organizations and the general public," he wrote.
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God, what a scandal. Any legitimate opposition would sweep these assholes from office with ease. Unfortunately . . .