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Bush tries to reassure Gulf Coast

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published April 28, 2006

NEW ORLEANS - Surrounded by evidence of the incomplete recovery from Hurricane Katrina, President Bush on Thursday tried to calm fears across the Gulf Coast that another monster storm could be lurking in the upcoming hurricane season.

"If there is one, the response will be as effective as possible," said Bush, whose administration has been faulted for a flawed response to Katrina that exacerbated the hurricane's destruction.

Sensitive to voters' anger over soaring gasoline prices, Bush also said he wants Congress to give the Transportation Department the power to increase auto fuel economy standards - an idea proposed in an energy plan by Senate Republicans. The department already has such authority over pickups, sport utility vehicles and vans.

Later Thursday, Transportation Secretary Norman Mineta wrote a letter to House and Senate leaders of both parties urging prompt action on the president's request. Mineta wrote it was "imperative that (fuel-economy) standards be set through an administrative process based on sound science and data."

The hurricane season begins June 1, and the president said his administration is working with local officials to make sure communications are clearer and supplies are effectively positioned in advance.

Don Powell, Bush's liaison to hurricane relief efforts, said the restoration of New Orleans' levees to pre-Katrina condition is expected to be complete by June 1.

"We are far better prepared today than we were this time last year," said Frances Fragos Townsend, Bush's homeland security adviser. "And we will be far better prepared by June 1."

The president said, "All of us in positions of responsibility appreciate those who are helping us to understand how to do our jobs better."

Bush's trip to still-devastated Louisiana and Mississippi was intended to encourage volunteers to pitch in on the massive reconstruction effort.

In New Orleans, the president stopped at a modest bungalow being restored by volunteers in the 9th Ward, one of the city's majority-black neighborhoods that endured the storm's brunt and remain largely uninhabitable.

The street was piled high in places with trash. Yards were overgrown with weeds. White government trailers that are the main housing for the displaced sat in many front yards.

With less half of the New Orleans population back, few residents were evident. The president's motorcade parked in front of one of the city's many shuttered schools.

Ethel Williams, the owner of the single-story green and white duplex, thanked those who are gutting her house so she can return from Texas, where she fled during the storm.

"I'm proud that you're here, Mr. President, and I won't ever forget you," she said, her arm around Bush's waist. The high-water mark from Katrina's flooding was visible behind her, about one-third of the way up her home's single story.

Bush said, "If you're interested in helping the victims of Katrina, interested in helping them get back on their feet, come on down here."

[Last modified April 28, 2006, 01:17:12]