Mike Brown Resigns as FEMA Head
CNN Breaking News: Mike Brown says he has resigned as director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency. (Update: Story link)
Embattled FEMA Director Mike Brown Resigns (AP) [MSNBC]
Federal Emergency Management Agency director Mike Brown said Monday he has resigned “in the best interest of the agency and best interest of the president,” three days after losing his onsite command of the Hurricane Katrina relief effort. “The focus has got to be on FEMA, what the people are trying to do down there,” Brown told The Associated Press.
His decision was not a surprise. Brown was abruptly recalled to Washington on Friday, a clear vote of no confidence from his superiors at the White House and the Department of Homeland Security. Brown had been roundly criticized for FEMA’s bearish response to the hurricane, which has caused political problem for Bush and fellow Republicans.
“I’m turning in my resignation today,” Brown said. “I think it’s in the best interest of the agency and the best interest of the president to do that and get the media focused on the good things that are going on, instead of me.” Brown, who said he last talked to Bush five or six days ago, said the resignation was his idea. He spoke on Saturday to White House chief of staff Andy Card, who did not request his departure, according to Brown.
Brown was certainly a distraction and almost certainly unqualified for the job. It’s still not clear that it would have much mattered.
Anyone want to bet that the next head of FEMA will be ex-military, but with minimal real emergency management experience?
I am sorry to see that Mike Brown has been the scapegoat of the Katrina Disaster. Chertoff should have been the one to be fired if anyone was to blame. Mike Brown did make one big mistake, That was to take on a job with a department laced with CYA bureaucratic red tape designed to impede, delay, and obstruct the mission to be accomplished. Chertoff should have been the one to cut through that bureaucratic red tape and to aid and assist Brown in the performance of his job.
And then there is Governor Bianco as well as that incompetent mayor of NO. Their heads should also be on the chopping block for not recognizing the severity of the disaster and delaying the assistance and aid from FEMA. If President Bush has any of the manly parts, he should demand their resignations.
I must admit, that the Dumbocrats have won this skirmish and they to should admonished and held accountable tor their lack of foresight and accountability.
Yeah, somehow this is *’s fault. Let’s impeach him and get it over with. Ya’know, if Al Gore was allowed to be President, we wouldn’t have Global Warming and Hurricane Katrina wouldn’t have happened. Damn conservatives on the SCOTUS selecting *.
Well, my first guess (above) was just plain wrong.
This is the new guy, R. David Paulison (this hasn’t been updated, it’s his old bio):
http://www.fema.gov/about/bios/paulison.shtm
“R. David Paulison was appointed director of the Preparedness Division of the Emergency Preparedness & Response Directorate/FEMA, in the newly created Department of Homeland Security in 2003. He will continue to serve as the administrator for the U.S. Fire Administration, a position to which he was appointed in December 2001.”
That word??? Was it crisis? Disaster? well the Chinese had another meaning for it -opportunity!
The Dems must eat a lot of Chinese food as that was exactly how they viewed Katrina – an opportunity to get Bush.
They’re just like cockroaches -except they haven’t shame enough to run when the light of truth shines on them!
Can anyone tell me what language Fersboo is writing in. Just let me know so I can let my computer translate.
And DL, you are right on, the dumb-o- crats sure turned Katrina into a political windfall for themselves. They have stooped to a new low in ethics and morality.
About the time when you would think they might slow up a little, they leap into another tantrum about Katrina. They have no shame and they would try to capitalize on anyones misfortune if they could gain a political point.
With the Roberts hearings on National Television, the American people will see first hand just what political scum they really are.