Think Progress

FEMA Chief Brown

By Judd Legum on Sep 6th, 2005 at 9:45 pm

“waited until hours after Hurricane Katrina had already struck the Gulf Coast before asking his boss to dispatch 1,000 Homeland Security employees to the region — and gave them two days to arrive,” according to internal documents obtained by the AP. (Via TPM)

Comments
28

28 Responses to “FEMA Chief Brown”

Justin says:

Interesting. Well I dunno, but I’ve been arguing with a lot of people over whether it was the governor or Bush who was incompetant. I think Bush is the more incompetant one, but these people keep saying stuff like the Feds didn’t have legal authority to go in and stuff.
September 6th, 2005 at 9:50 pm
Ellis says:

Maybe this is why they had 2 days to arrive. Map reading is not a requisite skill. All I can add is un-fucking-believable

“(CNN) — Add geography to the growing list of FEMA fumbles.

A South Carolina health official said his colleagues scrambled Tuesday when FEMA gave only a half-hour notice to prepare for the arrival of a plane carrying as many as 180 evacuees to Charleston.

But the plane, instead, landed in Charleston, West Virginia, 400 miles away.” …

http://www.cnn.com/2005/US/09/06/katrina.charleston/index.html
September 6th, 2005 at 9:51 pm
Ellis says:

“saying stuff like the Feds didnâ€™t have legal authority to go in” … BS. See the following and link to it for more.

http://www.tpmcafe.com/story/2005/9/4/171811/1974

… The National Response Plan was accepted and implemented by Bush Administration in December 2004. According to the PREFACE, President Bush, “directed the development of a new National Response Plan (NRP) to align Federal coordination structures, capabilities, and resources into a unified, all discipline, and all-hazards approach to domestic incident management. . . .The end result is vastly improved coordination among Federal, State, local, and tribal organizations to help save lives and protect America’s communities by increasing the speed, effectiveness, and efficiency of incident management.”

Efforts by Chertoff and other Administration spinmeisters to pin the blame on the delayed response on State and local authorities does not hold water. Although the NRP recognizes that State and local authorities have a responsibility to ask for help, the NRP correctly provides a provision to take proactive steps to deal with a threat. On page 43 of the NRP the section is titled, “Proactive Federal Response to Catastrophic Events” (which I have copied and pasted below:

The NRP establishes policies, procedures, and mechanisms for proactive Federal response to catastrophic events. A catastrophic event is any natural or manmade incident, including terrorism, that results in extraordinary levels of mass casualties, damage, or disruption severely affecting the population, infrastructure, environment, economy, national morale, and/or government functions. A catastrophic event could result in sustained national impacts over a prolonged period of time; almost immediately exceeds resources normally available to State, local, tribal, and private-sector authorities in the impacted area; and significantly interrupts governmental operations and emergency services to such an extent that national security could be threatened. All catastrophic events are Incidents of National Significance….

September 6th, 2005 at 9:59 pm
cynical ex-hippie says:

“And make sure the ponies are all groomed and ready.”
September 6th, 2005 at 10:03 pm
Jon says:

Despite his staggering failures, Mike Brown’s job would seem secure. After all, “Brownie” delivered Florida for Bush in 2004.

For the full story on the politics of Bush-era disaster relief, see:

“FEMA: Florida Election Management Agency.”
September 6th, 2005 at 10:13 pm
Clyde the Ripper says:

#2

You left out the footnote: “Unless the majority of the victims are poor non-Republican voting Southerners or from a “Blue” State.

Did the Bush Administration calculate the amount of the new tax cut for the rich generated by the Welfare and relocation savings from the deseased victims extrapolated on a death-by-day-of-delay basis. The DHS is now projecting over 40,000 bodies. That is a lot of welfare checks. I wonder why he didn’t give them two weeks to get there. What a savings!
September 6th, 2005 at 10:19 pm
Marie says:

In the event of a national emergency, the mission statement of the Department of Homeland Security states
that they (FEMA) would immediately assume responsibility. The Governor of LA asked for federal help on the previous Friday afternoon. The Mayor declared an emergency on Saturday morning. No help was sent. On Monday, and on Tuesday after the flood, the governoe asked for help again.
This is all reported in the newspapers; an early story saying no help was requested until later was retracted and corrected. But the fact remains that the charter for Homeland Security (FEMA) indicates their responsibility in such events and they failed to implement anything for days. What were they waiting for? They claimed they didn’t even know some facts that the entire nation knew. They failed. Their excuse are lame. They must be held accountable.
September 6th, 2005 at 10:44 pm
Impeach Bush Now says:

The stunning human tragedy of Katrina makes the impeachment of
President Bush more urgent. His priority is not poor people, but militarism to
exploit the poor at home and abroad.

President Bush sent National Guard units to Iraq from Alabama,
Louisiana and Mississippi in a criminal war of aggression and military
occupation. They were thus unavailable to provide emergency services in their
own states, or protect their own families. He refused to return them
from Iraq to save and serve their own people, instead only authorizing the
return of some Air National Guard personnel to protect and repair
equipment at an Air Force Base. The forces and the resources that they
command should be used to meet people’s needs, not for violence.

His tax cuts for the rich, huge increases in military spending and
deliberate slashes in social programs, including those funds specifically
requested for flood control and to strengthen dikes in New Orleans and
the surrounding areas, and his complete failure to even consider
emergency transportation for the known poor in the path of a level-5
hurricane, followed by days of failure to send federal emergency relief
personnel to seek and save the many thousands whose lives were known to be
threatened, who were pleading for help on television and who faced death,
was criminal negligence at best, and a failure to faithfully perform his
duties as President.

George W. Bush will never recognize the rights or human dignity of the
immense and growing population of Americans – overwhelmingly African
American and other minorities and elderly – living in Third World
conditions here at home. They were the principal victims of Katrina, as they
are of his failure to assure equal protection of the laws to all. Their
plight and peril will worsen while President Bush remains President.

The only act that can stop President Bush from continuing his criminal
war of aggression against Iraq and his arrogant criminal acts and
threats against Cuba, Haiti, Iran, Korea, Syria, Venezuela and any country
in his path is impeachment. Impeachment is an act already two years past
due. The cost of delay is staggering: two thousand U.S. military
deaths, ten thousand and more wounded, many thousands more disabled, more
than 100,000 Iraqi deaths, several hundred thousand injured, nearly
$200,000,000 in federal funds, and even greater damage to Iraq in shattered
lives and smashed cities and infrastructure. The cost of delay, already
staggering, is greater every day.

While proclaiming freedom his credo, George W. Bush has done more to
destroy freedom and the human dignity which it nourishes than all other
Presidents in our history. Who would have dreamed of Abu Ghraib, scores
of prisoners murdered, assassinations and summary executions,
Guantanamo, thousands imprisoned in the U.S. without Constitutional protections,
or sent to be tortured in client states with impunity, all for a
President and those acting for him? What prior President has proclaimed
himself above the law, coerced more than 100 countries into bilateral
treaties promising never to surrender a U.S. citizen to the International
Criminal Court?

The world watches and wonders why, if the American people are free,
they fail to resist the criminal violence of their President.

The only act that can redeem the United States in the hearts and minds
of those still capable of forgiving and believing our government can
change its violent ways is the impeachment of George W. Bush and the
responsible officials of his administration before it is too late.

The time to begin a final drive for impeachment is now. Together, we
are not helpless. Power is in the people united for peace. Perseverance
through the midterm Congressional elections in November 2006 can force
incumbent members of the House of Representatives to impeach President
Bush or face defeat. Failing that, it can restore integrity and honor to
the President’s oath to “preserve, protect and defend the Constitution
of the United States.”

The Constitution, written with the abuses of King George III painfully
in mind, is unequivocal in the action required for criminal conduct of
civil officers of the United States:

“The President, Vice President and all civil Officers of the United
States, shall be removed from Office on Impeachment for, and Conviction
of, Treason, Bribery, or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors.” Article II,
Section 4.

The Nuremberg Judgment proclaimed war of aggression “the Supreme
international crime.” World War II was comprised of wars of aggression.
President Bush boasted assassination and summary executions in his 2003
State of the Union message.

We need your help. Vote to Impeach. Persuade others to vote to impeach
now.
September 6th, 2005 at 10:54 pm
Clyde the Ripper says:

Let’s get it done, Friends! We can do it!
September 6th, 2005 at 11:11 pm
Brian says:

Tom Delay just blamed the states for the poor response.
September 6th, 2005 at 11:19 pm
bk says:

Tom Delay is as crooked as his eyes
September 6th, 2005 at 11:39 pm
cynical ex-hippie says:

You have to stop doing this. There is no way the President of this country appointed a horse judge to plan for and manage national emergencies. No way. That would never happen.
September 7th, 2005 at 1:07 am
EasyRider says:

After reading the articles about Brown’s memo and orders to FEMA personnel and the damn supporting comments from the FEMA spokesmen; I want to as a question.

Who thinks that the incompetence of FEMA was not by the direction and orders of Bush and his staff?

I mean does anybody think Brown put in place the PR mission of FEMA on his own? Who other than Bush could direct that FEMA be changed from an effective government agency into a PR machine for the president? I mean with all the former Bush campaign managers being assigned to FEMA to turn it into the PR machine Brown pushes onto volunteers for Katrine relief effort. Passing out PR fliers?

Have we filed charges against this guy? Have we secured all this agency files and computers to prevent another window of opportunity for the destruction of evidence of criminally acts?

We need the prosecutors in these states and any state that has a resident that was caught in New Orleans and put in danger to start arresting these guys.

Hell, In the USSR they would not even stand for this level of incompetence. They arrest and maybe execute them in a short time than we will even set up an investigation. That is a fact. It is also a sad reality of the state of things here in American politics.
September 7th, 2005 at 1:35 am
Dumb Fox says:

For anyone wanting to see the leaked FEMA document, I attach the link below.

http://wid.ap.org/documents/dhskatrina.pdf

Some of the regulars here know I used to be in the employ of a government agency, and this memo should draw a line under Brown’s FEMA career. And I’ll tell you why.

Page 2: “Convey a positive image of disaster operations to government officials, community
organizations and the general public.”

To “Convey a positive image” has never and will never be an explicit function or objective of a government agency/department. The reputation of the agency (and government) is never an issue in itself. You do your job; you don’t worry about perceptions. Period.

If Brown had the merest experience working a federal job, he’d never have made such a dopy statement and put it in writing. But that’s why I absolutely detest the political clowns Dubya’s been appointing in any available vacancy. Public service has never been further from their conscience, and they haven’t a clue what it actually entails.

FEMA is a disaster-management agency, and it’s reputation ultimately depends on its ability to save lives. Conveying a positive image couldn’t be a less relevant consideration.
September 7th, 2005 at 8:29 am
Andrew says:

While it is only about some kind of volunteer force, it does point out what a political hack the guy is and the fact that they didn’t think about this “volunteer” force until after the storm hit. Don’t you think the “plan” would have included such a thing? You’d think at least they would have their political hackishness planned in detail! What does he think he’s running? A HORSE SHOW??? *smirk*
September 7th, 2005 at 9:09 am
Marie says:

Words fail me when I try to epress an opinion of Tom Delay, the unethical, immoral, smug, sanctimonious, lying, greedy uber-politican.
Anyone who finds himself in the same room with the vermin, Delay will be in need of an anti-bacterial shower.
September 7th, 2005 at 9:22 am
EasyRider says:

Where is the professional FEMA staff? I mean where are the orders about the deployment of the FEMA staff and not the volunteers?
September 7th, 2005 at 9:33 am
wisedup says:

Has bushie ever…fired anyone?
I have signed 3 impeachment forms and looking for MORE!
September 7th, 2005 at 9:45 am
Sharon Cox says:

Very good post’s everyone. I agree with them all.
September 7th, 2005 at 10:29 am
EasyRider says:

Who appointed these Bushie to FEMA positions? Who okayed the selection and appointment?
September 7th, 2005 at 10:30 am
Darth Filibustrous says:

Step back for a second… Am I to believe that when a National Disaster occurs, there’s an argument about jurisdiction? The reason the Feds didn’t arrive is because the Feds didn’t arrive and that’s it. No one blocked them but themselves. It’s as simple as that.

Another sad example of Feds blocking Feds – 2 Navy pilots were actually REPRIMANDED for saving 100 lives. If this is how things work, I just don’t understand it…

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/07/national/nationalspecial/07navy.html?pagewanted=print
September 7th, 2005 at 10:33 am
Pablo in Mexico says:

#17

You signed 3 worthless documents. Unless a bill of impeachment comes from a puke committee, it will not be heard.

A University of Illinois professor filed with congress in early 2005 a Bill of Impeachment which delay used to wipe his big ass with.
September 7th, 2005 at 10:35 am
A says:

At least Louisiana isn’t a swing state anymore!
September 7th, 2005 at 11:22 am
EasyRider says:

Impeachment of Bush will not happen. We need to locally indict and prosecute the entire Bush administration, all the officals including Bush. This is the only means for removing the GOP from office.

We also need to remove ownship of the voting machines and how the votes are counted from the GOP and GOP supporters.

Else we with have more elections stolen and more of the corrupt GOP ownership of the American government.
September 7th, 2005 at 11:40 am
Tara says:

To be fair, this memo seems to refer to everyday FEMA employees who want to volunteer, not the “first responders” who were already required to go. My fed. agency also recently sent a memo like this to the “everyday folk” to see if they want to volunteer. Which is not to say that FEMA hasn’t royally screwed up, I just don’t think this memo is evidence of it.
September 7th, 2005 at 3:08 pm
corporate relocation says:

corporate relocation

Interestingly, this was on CNN last week.
March 23rd, 2008 at 10:26 am
Payday Loan says:

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April 4th, 2008 at 12:32 am
Jim Crow Laws Employment Law Us Supreme Court says:

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I can not agree with you in 100% regarding some thoughts, but you got good point of view
April 9th, 2008 at 2:05 am

FEMA Chief Brown

FEMA Chief Brown

28 Responses to “FEMA Chief Brown”

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