ABC, CBS report Bush's defense of Katrina response without noting congressional criticism
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SUMMARY: ABC World News and CBS Evening News aired comments by President Bush at his January 12 press conference in defense of his administration's handling of Hurricane Katrina, during which he asserted in part: "[C]ould I have done something differently, like land Air Force One either in New Orleans or Baton Rouge?" However, neither network's report noted the bipartisan congressional criticism of the Bush administration's response to Katrina.
On January 12, ABC World News uncritically aired comments by President Bush at a press conference earlier that day in defense of his administration's response to Hurricane Katrina. He said in part: "I thought long and hard about Katrina. You know, could I have done something differently, like land Air Force One either in New Orleans or Baton Rouge?" But ABC's report did not note that the criticism of the federal government's response to Katrina goes far beyond the Air Force One incident, as documented in a May 2006 report by the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs and in a February 2006 report by the U.S. House of Representatives' Select Bipartisan Committee. Similarly, on January 12, CBS Evening News aired footage of Bush's comments about the Air Force One incident, as well as his assertion, "Don't tell me the federal response was slow when there was 30,000 people pulled off roofs right after the storm passed," also without noting the bipartisan congressional criticism of the Bush administration's response to Katrina.
On ABC World News, anchor Charles Gibson said of Bush's press conference: "For the first time, he talked extensively about mistakes in his presidency." Gibson then aired a clip from the press conference in which Bush said of Katrina:
BUSH: I've thought long and hard about Katrina. You know, could I have done something differently, like land Air Force One either in New Orleans or Baton Rouge? ... And then your questions, I suspect, would have been, "How could you possibly have flown Air Force One into Baton Rouge, and police officers that were needed to expedite traffic out of New Orleans were taken off the task to look after you?"
On CBS Evening News, anchor Katie Couric said to CBS News political analyst and former counselor to President Bush Dan Bartlett: "Dan, I know you've described the administration's reaction to Hurricane Katrina as one of the most politically damaging of the presidency. He defended the administration's actions very vociferously today. Were you surprised at that?" Bartlett responded: "Not quite, Katie. It must have been -- it had -- it was, when I was there, one of the most frustrating chapters in the presidency. We went through a lot. But that one particularly, because of not only the public PR reception of some of the decisions he made, but also the enormity of the challenge, the difficulty of getting help to people. And we all struggled through that week to do what we thought was right." Couric then aired a clip from Bush's press conference, in which Bush asserted of Katrina:
BUSH: I've thought long and hard about Katrina. You know, could I have done something differently, like land Air Force One either in New Orleans or Baton Rouge? The problem with that and -- is that law enforcement would have been pulled away from the mission, and then your questions, I suspect, would have been, "How could you possibly have flown Air Force One into Baton Rouge, and police officers that were needed to expedite traffic out of New Orleans were taken off the task to look after you?" ... People said, "Well, the federal response was slow." Don't tell me the federal response was slow when there was 30,000 people pulled off roofs right after the storm passed.
But neither report noted that bipartisan congressional committees issued reports critical of the Bush administration over its handling of Katrina. Indeed, the criticism was far broader than the issue of Bush's failure to "land Air Force One either in New Orleans or Baton Rouge" and more specific than that, as CBS aired Bush saying, "the federal response was slow."
As Media Matters for America documented, the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Government Affairs released a report in May 2006, which concluded that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) "failed to lead an effective federal response to Hurricane Katrina" and listed specific steps that Homeland Security Secretary Michael Chertoff failed to take both before and after the storm. The report stated: "Secretary Chertoff failed to make ready the full range of federal assets pursuant to DHS's responsibilities under the National Response Plan (NRP)" and "failed to appoint a Principal Federal Official (PFO), the official charged with overseeing the federal response under the NRP, until 36 hours after landfall." Michael Brown, the PFO that Chertoff eventually chose, "was hostile to the federal government's agreed-upon response plan and therefore was unlikely to perform effectively in accordance with its principles." Moreover, the Senate report stated: "Even when appointed PFO, Brown remained the Director of FEMA [Federal Emergency Management Agency], an apparent violation of the NRP's requirement that a PFO not be ' 'dual hatted' with any other roles or responsibilities that could detract from their overall incident-management responsibilities.' " The Senate report further stated that "the suffering that continued in the days and weeks after the storm passed did not happen in a vacuum; instead, it continued longer than it should have because of -- and was in some cases exacerbated by -- the failure of government at all levels to plan, prepare for, and respond aggressively to the storm. These failures were not just conspicuous; they were pervasive."
Similarly, the House of Representatives' Select Bipartisan Committee to Investigate the Preparation for and Response to Hurricane Katrina, which released its final report on February 15, 2006, found that "DHS was not prepared to respond to the catastrophic effects of Hurricane Katrina." The report also found that "critical elements of the National Response Plan," parts of which Chertoff was responsible for, "were executed late, ineffectively, or not at all," and that "[f]ederal agencies, including DHS, had varying degrees of unfamiliarity with their roles and responsibilities under the National Response Plan and National Incident Management System." The report concluded: "We are left scratching our heads at the range of inefficiency and ineffectiveness that characterized government behavior right before and after this storm. But passivity did the most damage. The failure of initiative cost lives, prolonged suffering, and left all Americans justifiably concerned our government is no better prepared to protect its people than it was before 9/11, even if we are."
From the January 12 edition of ABC World News:
GIBSON: For the first time, he talked extensively about mistakes in his presidency.
[begin video clip]
BUSH: Clearly, putting a "Mission Accomplished" on a aircraft carrier was a mistake. It sent the wrong message. We were trying to say something differently, but nevertheless, it conveyed a different message. Obviously, some of my rhetoric has been a mistake.
I've thought long and hard about Katrina. You know, could I have done something differently, like land Air Force One either in New Orleans or Baton Rouge? ... And then your questions, I suspect, would have been, "How could you possibly have flown Air Force One into Baton Rouge, and police officers that were needed to expedite traffic out of New Orleans were taken off the task to look after you?"
[...]
BUSH: There have been disappointments. Abu Ghraib, obviously, was a huge disappointment during the presidency. Not having weapons of mass destruction was a significant disappointment. I don't know if you want to call those mistakes or not, but they were -- things didn't go according to plan, let's put it that way.
[end video clip]
GIBSON: He talked about following his own compass and the burdens of the job.
From the January 12 edition of the CBS Evening News:
COURIC: Meanwhile, Dan, I know you've described the administration's reaction to Hurricane Katrina as one of the most politically damaging of the presidency. He defended the administration's actions very vociferously today. Were you surprised at that?
BARTLETT: Not quite, Katie. It must have been -- it had -- it was, when I was there, one of the most frustrating chapters in the presidency. We went through a lot. But that one particularly, because of not only the public PR reception of some of the decisions he made, but also the enormity of the challenge, the difficulty of getting help to people. And we all struggled through that week to do what we thought was right. And I think looking back on that, he felt like some of the big decisions we made we did get right. Some of the PR things we could have gotten better.
COURIC: Let's listen to what he had to say about that.
[begin video clip]
BUSH: I've thought long and hard about Katrina. You know, could I have done something differently, like land Air Force One either in New Orleans or Baton Rouge? The problem with that and -- is that law enforcement would have been pulled away from the mission, and then your questions, I suspect, would have been, "How could you possibly have flown Air Force One into Baton Rouge, and police officers that were needed to expedite traffic out of New Orleans were taken off the task to look after you?" ... People said, "Well, the federal response was slow." Don't tell me the federal response was slow when there was 30,000 people pulled off roofs right after the storm passed.
[...]
BUSH: I was affected by TV after the elections. When I saw people saying, "I never thought I would see the day that a black person would be elected president," and a lot of people had tears streaming down their cheeks when they said it. And so, I am -- I am -- consider myself fortunate to have a front-row seat on what is going to be an historic moment for the country.
[...]
BUSH: And he'll get sworn in and they'll have the lunch and all the, you know, all the deal up there on Capitol Hill, and then he'll come back and go through the Inauguration. And then he'll walk in the Oval Office. And there will be a moment when the responsibilities of the president land squarely on his shoulders.
[...]
BUSH: Sometimes the biggest disappointments will come from your so-called friends. And there will be disappointments, I promise you. He'll be disappointed.
[end video clip]
COURIC: A wide-ranging and fascinating final news conference today by President Bush. Jim Axelrod, Dan Bartlett, thank you so much for your perspectives tonight.
What bothers me most about this is that Bush still sees it in entirely a PR framework. I don't think anyone would have cared if he had never stepped foot in the Ninth Ward, so long as people were saved and sheltered and the city rebuilt in a reasonable time frame. He doesn't see it as thousands of people losing their lives, or homes, or worldly possessions, but as "that time my approval ratings plummeted because the pictures of me on Air Force One made me look aloof"
As much as I personally suffer from Bush fatigue, you make a good point about the "PR framework". It isn't so much about responsibility and accountability with him, but how it played out, how it was seen, how strategic the actions were in the context of politics - lingering affects of Karl Rove, apparently.
His smart alecky demeanor throughout just reinforced what many believe, he just doesn't get it.
Certainly not having to see GWB talk anymore will be a gift that keeps on giving, but secondly not having to see the press cover up for his sins just because they're afraid of the admin will come a close second.
What bothers me is the lack of coverage for the Mississippi Coast, or the other parts of L.A. You do not hear about those areas because individuals got off the butt and started rebuilding, they did not wait for the Government to fix their problems. What about the coastline of Texas after Ike, that is no longer on the news because there are no pictures of people sticking out their hand begging, they are also getting to work to rebuild the city. So tell me, was it that New Orleans was an area of Americas of an Africa descent that makes it more interesting? Make for better news? The government should not have to fix everyone's problems; they should provide aid once they can get into the area. Still today Katrina individuals are getting their rent paid and other monies.
What bothers me is the lack of coverage for the Mississippi Coast
I guess you failed to realize (or read) that Miss. has a Rep. governor, good pals with the Bushies, and he got all the aid he needed to rebuild.
And you also fail to understand the basic difference between HURRICANE damage and FLOOD damage.
I guess you pretty much fail at comprehending recent historical events that can be easily researched.
markbfootinmymouth probably shakes his head at all those lazy, shiftless, starving idiots in Ethiopia and wonder why they don't just start their own home businesses.
JJ - not the same, so stick to the issue. JJ, when was the last time you were in New Orleans, are do you only see what the press has shown you?
Fog, no you are wrong. The Mississippi coast received less money per person then the New Orleans area. I My question to you is, are you saying that New Orleans received no Hurricane Damage and only Flood? Yes, the levees fail, and anyone that has lived in the New Orleans area will tell you, that was not unexpected. The Levees system was not ready to hold up to a Cat5 storm, but all the money that had been given to the area for many, many years was spent on other things besides the problem. So if a state that has been controlled for decades by the Demos had taken care of the problem, we would not have had the Flood damage. Of course you must have just skipped right over my statement about the Texas Coast, so what is your excuse there?
...anyone that has lived in the New Orleans area will tell you, that was not unexpected.
Really, I lived a few blocks from the 17th Street Canal and the levee failure there surprised the hell out of us. Of course, we didn't know that the Corps of Engineers was aware that the soil beneath those levess was already compromised...and kept quiet about it. Some of you still don't get it...the collapse of the 17th Street Canal levee was not part of any projected doomesday scenario. What was of concern were the lakefront levees being topped...but they held.
The Levees system was not ready to hold up to a Cat5 storm
Wrong again (as usual). Look what I found in about 20 seconds:
The storm weakened before making its second landfall as a Category 3 storm on the morning of Monday, August 29 in southeast Louisiana. It caused severe destruction along the Gulf coast from central Florida to Texas, much of it due to the storm surge.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hurricane_Katrina
NO had hurricane damage AND floor damage. Why is that so hard for you to grasp?
except there is good solid reason to criticize bush, and what the republicans did to clinton was mostly fake scandals and hypocritical outrage. you see no difference?
What type of fantasy world are you living in? You want the Dems to forget about serious crimes while republicans are gearing up to tear down Obama's presidency? They're going to call for investigations into anything that has the slightest hint of impropriety.
was the "mission accomplished" sign really a mistake though? not really, when you consider it in the context of all the shinola that was being thrown about at the time. weren't we going to be in and out quickly? wasn't the war going to "pay for itself"? wasn't democracy going to spread quickly all over the middle east? weren't the grateful iraqis going to quickly form their own democratic government, once freed from the yoke of saddam? weapons of mass destruction or not, we never should have gone in there because they have a long, long history of killing each other over religious differences. the reason civilian deaths are down is because of the simple fact that a lot of neighborhoods have been ethnically cleansed of the other side. it's a mess we never should have stepped into. [and save the "you must love saddam" posts. i didn't and don't.]
Another Republican playing the victim. You're just damned if you do damned if you don't aren't you Georgie? The liberal media b*tches & moans that you did nothing to help the victims of Katrina but if you'd turned the whole thing into another self congratulatory photo op they would of whined about that too. There's just no pleasing some people.
Pathetic
Fugue, emergency services were at the C.C. with 24 hours. Even if it took 48 hours, they had been instructed to have emergency water and food to last yourself 48 hours, but guess that was the Bushies fault for not going door to door and hand them the ER needs for 48 hours. At what point is a individual responsible for their own well being? All the things you heard that were going on in the Superdome, wrong. If you go back and investigate you will learn that a majority of the horror you heard were false. Now what was true was all the buses that were sitting in the parking lot ready to take the individuals out of the city. The great mayor was too hard headed to load them up and head out. Since the Bushies were not in control of city government, whom is to blame for not getting those folks out? The Levee system will take time to get up to code, what do you think that would happen over night? The Levees have not been up to code for decades, the money had been sent down to the government to fix, but never did? Guess you blame the Bushies for that as well.
You are just so, so wrong in so many ways. Maybe some of our NO residents who visit this site can set you straight better than I can.
In brief, a calamity of this magnitude requires the federal governments intervention. It didn't arrive until hundreds of people died AFTER they survived the storm.
And about the money "sent down to the government to fix", last time I checked, the levees were the responsibility of the Army Corps of Engineers, a FEDERAL entity.
Fog, I used to live in N.O. and visit family there often. I have listed an news report that will help you understand how the City of N.O. works. Once again, you are wrong.
"Although the corps and federal officials kept a tight leash on funding, the Orleans board spent money lavishly, diverting resources to high-stakes investments such as casinos and marinas. The levee board’s unusual authority to hire its own consultants allowed its officials to select firms that regularly gave campaign contributions to politicians with influence over levee board business."
http://articles.latimes.com/2005/dec/25/nation/na-levee25
Here's what some soulless old woman calling in from Florida had to say on this issue on CSPAN's "Washington Journal" this morning:
"I think the reason we haven't been attacked since 9/11 is because we've got a prayin' President at home, and the reason we've been attacked overseas is because we don't have a prayin' people. And about Katrina, that wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for those Democrats in charge, Mayor Nagin and that Governor, Blanco. Here in Florida, we know that if you get a warning to leave, you've got 48 hours to leave or you are on your own. And we stand up and FIGHT for our state!"
Washington Journal would be a great source of comedy every morning, if it weren't so damned sad.
The praying part I can do without but the "you've got 48 hours to leave and if you don't, you're on your own" oughta ring a bell with N.O. residents. They had 5 days to leave. The smart ones did, a lot of lazy ones didn't and many poor and handicapped had Nagin and Blanco to thank for their plight. Mr. Bush can take the blame for the aftermath, I don't have a problem with that, but Nagin and Blanco got off relatively scot-free. Nagin got re-elected a la Marion Barry and fortunately, Blanco was replaced. I'm not defending GW but the magnitude of the disaster was historic and hopefully something was learned.
a lot of lazy ones didn't
Why do you hate poor people so much?
That's a very interesting theory the woman has. God let one major attack happen under our praying president, but then decided that was enough, and prevented further attacks.
Then God decided to punish those who had gone overseas to fight under orders from that prayin' Prez., because some of the people (here or overseas?) aren't prayin' enough.
Her assessment of the causes of the Katrina aftermath seem almost sane compared to the terrorism stuff.
The person most responsible for the chaotic response to Katrina was Mayor Ray Nagin. After him, the next person most responsible was Governor Kathleen Blanco. In your quest to lay blame, you continually ignore their roles. Can you spell "BIAS"?
Jack
It's hardly worth arguing with this idiot. He thinks poor people are all that way because they are stupid and lazy, and if they are stupid and lazy, then to hell with them. They had five days warning and they didn't jump into their SUVs and head for their summer homes inland, so either they were poor or stupid or lazy- and therefore beneath contempt as far as he's concerned.
What an utter waste of skin.