WASHINGTON - President Bush showed the nation Wednesday how seriously he is taking Hurricane Katrina.
He hurried home early from his vacation at his Texas ranch. He spoke to the nation on live TV from the Rose Garden. He plans to visit the storm-ravaged areas this week.
"This is going to be a difficult road. The challenges that we face on the ground are unprecedented. But there's no doubt in my mind we're going to succeed," Bush said from the Rose Garden, surrounded by members of his Cabinet. "The country stands with you. We will do all in our power to help you."
Bush said he and his administration would concentrate on three priorities: saving lives; making sure there is adequate food, water and shelter for survivors; and rebuilding communities.
"This recovery will take a long time," he said. "This recovery will take years."
Bush had been criticized for taking a monthlong vacation - the longest stretch away from Washington of any president in decades - while American soldiers fight in Iraq. But aides said he could lead effectively from the Crawford ranch, which they have called the Western White House, because of its high-level communications.
"Given the scope of this, it was imperative he return to Washington," said Richard Conley, a University of Florida professor who studies the presidency, "and not make this look like it was a casual event."
En route back to Washington, Air Force One slowed and flew low over the disaster area, so the president could see the almost completely submerged city of New Orleans, an entire Mississippi community turned to sticks and strips of highways that disappeared into black water.
Bush peered through a window, his fists clenched, his face grim.
"It's devastating," he said. "It's got to be doubly devastating on the ground."
The White House expects Bush to tour the Gulf Coast states later this week, much like he did after the four hurricanes in Florida last year.
Mississippi Sen. Trent Lott, who lost a house to Katrina, urged Bush to visit the region.
"Mr. President, the people of Mississippi are flat on their backs. They're going to need your help," Lott said in a call to Bush.
Political experts expect Bush to get a boost from helping America face what could be the largest natural disaster in U.S. history.
"That's what we expect a president to do - this compassionate part," said J. Edwin Benton, a government professor at the University of South Florida. "It's not uniquely Bush, but he has his own brand of that."
Bush's father, former President George Bush, was criticized when his administration was slow to respond to Hurricane Andrew in Florida in 1992.
The son created a tough, can-do image for himself after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorists attacks, and last year was quick to respond to Florida's hurricanes.
"There is a sense here that he's still the 9/11 president and could bring the same magic here," said Elliott Stonecipher, an independent political consultant from Shreveport, La.
After flying back to Washington on Wednesday, Bush chaired a meeting of a special inter-agency task force to coordinate and supplement the federal response to Katrina.
The panel includes representatives from the departments of Defense, Homeland Security, Health and Human Services, Housing and Urban Development and Energy in addition to the Environmental Protection Agency.
John Copenhaver, a former FEMA director for the Southeast region during the Clinton administration, said task forces have been used before in natural disasters.
He said Bush and his administration learned lessons from last year's string of hurricanes in Florida and the Sept. 11 attacks - all of which taught them how to coordinate multiple agencies.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
