Emergency Supplemental Appropriations Act to Meet Immediate Needs Arising From the Consequences of Hurricane Katrina, 2005

Mr. Speaker, I thank the gentleman for yielding time, and I thank him for his very strong statement. I wish to right off the bat associate myself with the remarks of the gentleman from Wisconsin, our ranking member on the Appropriations Committee, his remarks that he made in reserving the right to object. I thank the gentleman from California (Mr. Lewis), who knows firsthand as do I what an impact a natural disaster is to a State and how important it is to hear right away from the Federal Government as to what our commitment is to recovery.

I remember, as I am sure the gentleman from California does, when the Loma Prieta Earthquake hit Northern California, it was such a shock and such a surprise as with our colleagues today. We could see in my area of San Francisco parts of the city burning, bridges down and impassable, the people in need, without adequate shelter and the rest. The San Francisco Bay Area, let me broaden it, Loma Prieta is in the southern part of the bay area, as the gentlewoman from California (Ms. Zoe Lofgren) is reminding me.

Jamie Whitten came to the floor that day and said, Last night there was an earthquake in San Francisco. I immediately called in my staff and said, what is it that we can do to help. We want to remove all doubt in anyone's mind that we understand the gravity of the situation, that the social compact that the people have with the Federal Government will be one that will be honored and that this will not be part of their problem, the same thing that I know that the gentleman from California (Mr. Lewis) understood at the time of the Northridge Earthquake in Southern California where the response was one that helped remove doubt as to the fact that we are one Nation and that we are always moving to be a more perfect Union.

That challenge that our Founding Fathers gave us in the Constitution's preamble, to form a more perfect Union, it is the first responsibility listed there, is one that we must remember now, because we are faced with a situation where so many people in the Gulf States, in Louisiana and Mississippi and Alabama and Florida, are affected by this. In other natural disasters, as with our earthquakes in California, certain parts of the community were affected and other parts of the community helped the emergency relief and the recovery. Here we have a situation where we have a total devastation of a region. Who is there to help? All the more reason for us as the Congress of the United States to come together, to give hope to these people, to say to them that we hear your cries.

We hear them and we are told about them, also, from our distinguished Members of Congress from the region. The gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Taylor) lost his home, his only home, and those of many of his staff did as well. The gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Melancon) has been manning an emergency center to help people get help. The list goes on. The gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Jefferson) saw his whole city practically get wiped out. But I am sure that everyone on each side of the aisle has stories that they know firsthand. The gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Thompson), the ranking Democrat on our Committee on Homeland Security who knows full well what our capability is as a country and what an attack this is of nature and therefore what more we need to do to get this all done. The list goes on. There are many heroes in this.

So when I hear my distinguished colleague for whom I have great esteem, the gentleman from California (Mr. Lewis), say that we cannot have a full debate on this, we will just do it as a Special Order because we have got to get this to the President right away, that would have been a very good argument to have this special session of Congress much earlier this week, because it was clear that although we did not have all of the facts, we knew that people were hurting very badly in our country, that there was a need for additional resources, and it was important to bring the considerable talent on both sides of the aisle together in Washington, DC to make a judgment about the facts and to allocate the resources.

Just a couple of days ago it was thought that there was enough money to cover until next week, until we came back. So what? As it turns out, that was not a correct assessment. But even if it had been, why should we not have been here to give hope, to give inspiration if we are capable of that, but at least to remove all doubt in everyone's mind that this is the first order of business for us and that is to protect our people and try to make them whole in time of a natural disaster.

But we are here, and what we need to do and what we need people to hear is the strongest bipartisan cooperation, whatever the timing, on how we address their needs. Their needs have been referenced in terms of energy. Energy is important, not just at the pump, although let me say about that, pox on those who would price gouge at the pump to our people in our country who are already suffering from debilitating prices at the pump that enable some not to even be able to get to work, and now in this tragic time we do not want matters made worse with price gouging and there will be a price to pay for that. But energy for many reasons. Energy to get product, plywood, whatever it is, to where it is needed, to rebuild in the Gulf States, energy to keep the lights on, too. Such a high percentage of people, there are probably 5 million people, without electricity as we gather here today. Two million homes, 5 million people without electricity as we gather here.

Energy, and I know others will address it more specifically, is a very important part of this, especially since the Gulf States are such an important source of production and transport of energy to the rest of the country.

Our children. Think about the children. Right now they are supposed to be starting school. Instead, they are starting to wonder where their homes are, where their loved ones are, if their parents have jobs and if indeed they even have a school to go to. We have an enormous task ahead of us. Our children will forever be marked by the trauma of this hurricane unless we quickly take them to a place that says, there was a tragedy, people responded, you were considered a priority. Hopefully, they will get through. My own grandchildren who live in Houston and see all these children coming into the Houston area, Mr. Speaker, your area, they are becoming afraid of rain. If it rains, will our house be washed away? Just after 9/11 when kids were saying if a plane goes overhead, should we be afraid of that? We must reassure our children and eliminate the traumatic effect on top of the physical displacement that they are suffering here.

So whatever the allocation of these resources are, I hope it is enough. And if it is not, again with the facts as our friends, we must allocate the resources to make sure these children are in school.

I was telling some of the leaders yesterday in a conference call that when I visited Macedonia and other places in the Balkans, when these children were displaced and they did not have any classroom situation, it compounded the terrible experience that they had until a school situation was created for them. Think of what this is going to mean with people who have been sent to other States. How are those schools going to absorb all of these children even within their own States, but in two different school districts. In the allocation of our resources, I hope that we will have children first in terms of their education, their health.

That takes us to the significant public health issues that we are facing there. Dead bodies floating in the water, some say that is not a danger. I do not know. It sounds dangerous to me. The chemicals that are in the water. There are so many things that we do need the facts on. So it is not a question of speculation. What are the facts? What is the public health challenge that we face? How do we allocate the resources to stop that immediately, because if our children are sick and they see death around them, much

of the rest that we do is not going to seem as relevant.

We know that the list goes on. Shelter, people losing everything. I can tell you from my earthquake experience, and this is a little discouraging, you really are never made whole. The history of your family, the photographs, the sentimental attachment that you may have, some of that is just now to be forgotten. But if we cannot make them whole in the same way, we certainly have to give people hope in a new way that the life that they will lead will be something that not only replaces, but enhances, their experience, because they have been through a lot and in our perfect Union, as we embrace each other as people of America, we have to do so in a way that honors the social compact between the people and the government.

That means all people. It does not mean people who have the wherewithal to get away to a second or third home. It does not mean people who can get helicoptered out, and God bless them for their success in being able to do that. God bless them for taking that route. But it does mean that if people are left behind because of their economic status, then that is wrong. That is wrong and that is not something that this $10 billion should support.

We must, if this is not enough, do more. It is all an investment. It will cause an economic growth in the region as we rebuild, creating jobs, giving hope, bringing people home that I think will more than return to the Treasury what we are putting out there. But right now they need our help and they need it in a very substantial way. They need it for their health, for their housing, for their jobs, the education of their children, for the environment in which they live so that it is healthy and not again a public health hazard. They need to be considered full participants in this great country that we are.

Let me say that there are many heroes in all of this. I named some of our colleagues, the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Thompson), the gentleman from Louisiana (Mr. Melancon), the gentleman from Mississippi (Mr. Taylor), the gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Clyburn), those whose experiences I know firsthand. The list goes on and on. Again, others will speak from their firsthand experience about it. But the biggest heroes of course are the people who are on the front line all the time working very hard. I would hope that as we did in our earthquake situation, and forgive me for keeping returning to it, but it is an experience that we thought was the most desperate until we saw what we are seeing now, and this goes beyond anything I think that anyone can imagine, that the disaster assistance centers must be established, that people have to know what they have a right to in terms of their emergency assistance and that what people have a right to in terms of recovery, in terms of SBA loans and the rest of that.

There are some things in place that can help people right away if we can get FEMA in place to help them. But again we must remove all doubt that we are there for all people. It cannot be viewed as for those who will receive assistance and those who have not will go by the wayside. This issue of social justice, of economic justice, of the economic life of a city, of a State that rests on the fullest participation of all of its people must respond in the fullest way to all of its people.

I will say once again that I regret we could not have come here sooner with fuller participation of Members who have, again on both sides of the aisle, enormous experience in public health and energy issues and housing issues and education issues and the rest; but let us say that we get this running start now, and I have asked the Speaker that when we come back next week with the full participation of our membership that we establish a hurricane task force that would include the ranking members, the chairmen of the committees of jurisdiction relevant to this emergency relief and recovery and that that task force will immediately move forward in an expedited manner and not be slowed down by business as usual, but instead again give hope to these people.

Again, I associate myself with what the gentleman from Wisconsin said. Even 4 years later after 9/11, there are still many things that have not been done, that have been clearly indicated are necessary. We have the resources to do it. It is just a question of priorities. That takes us to what this is about, what our priorities are as a country. How we allocate our resources is a statement of our values. As we leave here today and we go forward in the weeks ahead, we must make sure that everyone understands that a statement of our values is to form a more perfect Union by meeting the needs of our people and not having half a loaf when they are all Americans and entitled to full recovery.

If we can spend $20 billion on reconstruction in Iraq, we can certainly use that as a start on reconstruction in America. I say that with the fullest appreciation for the importance of the reconstruction of Iraq. I respect that that is important to stability there. I respect that it is important to stability here, for us to do that. Again, I wish we were here sooner. We are not. Let us go forward. Let us do it in a bipartisan way. I think the last thing that the American people need to see is any kind of partisan bickering about how we go forward, but nonetheless we have to have a strong commitment to these people.

In the Bible, Isaiah tells us that to minister to the needs of God's creation is an act of worship. To ignore those needs is to dishonor the God who made us. Let us make the work that we do here an act of worship to the God who made us and an act of respect for the people who sent us here.

Mr. Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that it shall be in order at any time without intervention of any point of order to consider H.R. 3645 in the House; the bill shall be considered as read; the previous question shall be considered as ordered on the bill to final passage without intervening motion except (1) 10 minutes of debate equally divided and controlled by the chairman and ranking minority member of the Committee on Appropriations; and (2) one motion to recommit; clause 10 of rule XX shall not apply to the question of passage of the bill; and all Members may have 5 legislative days within which to revise and extend their remarks on the bill and that I may include tabular and extraneous material.

Mr. Speaker, will the gentleman yield?

I appreciate the gentleman yielding. I just wanted to emphasize a comment you just made that the limited debate of 10 minutes is designed to have us expedite the paperwork and otherwise from this process. In the meantime, we know the Members want to be heard so there will be a Special Order following the passage of the bill so that we can move forward with the paperwork and make sure the President gets this on his desk as quickly as possible.

Mr. Speaker, pursuant to the order of the House, I call up the bill (H.R. 3645) making emergency supplemental appropriations to meet immediate needs arising from the consequences of Hurricane Katrina, for the fiscal year ending September 30, 2005, and for other purposes, and ask for its immediate consideration in the House.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

We have come together today, for all of us in the House of Representatives know that words are not adequate to begin to deal with this horrendous natural disaster that has beset all Americans but particularly those people in the region of the Gulf.

Indeed, Mr. Speaker, I do not intend to speak extensively here today but to say that the bill is designed to make sure that all of us understand that America will respond to this tragedy. Money is not going to make the difference in the final analysis. This bill provides for $10 billion to make sure that FEMA has enough flexibility and adequate dollars will be available to flow in the very near term as we really assess the cost moving forward. This will not be the last time we discuss this issue in terms of both financial strain and also the horrid strain it is placing upon those Americans who are directly affected. The bill beyond that provides $500 million that will also be available for the Department of Defense to, in a flexible fashion, be of further assistance in this tragic disaster.

With that, I hope that the Members will participate in the Special Order that will follow this very brief debate in order to make sure that there is a complete airing as the House would seek its will.

Mr. Speaker, words cannot begin to describe the toll Mother Nature has taken on the people of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. The levels of desperation and human suffering from Hurricane Katrina are unlike anything we have seen in our country.

I do not intend to take much time today for the need in the affected region is so great. This is not a time for words or political rhetoric. It is a time for action. We need to move quickly, to save lives, and help the people of the region get back on their feet. The President has promised an unprecedented level of immediate aid. Congress is backing that promise with the funding and resources to keep the aid flowing.

This is a simple 2\1/2\-page supplemental. It contains two sections: $10 billion for FEMA within the Department of Homeland Security; and $500 million for the Operation and Maintenance, Defense-Wide account within the Department of Defense. The $10.5 billion figure was determined based on what FEMA is now spending on a daily basis and how much is needed to take us out a few weeks until we get a better assessment of what the long-term funding needs will be.

At the beginning of this week, FEMA had roughly $2.6 billion in its Disaster Relief Fund and $1.5 billion in the Flood Insurance Program. In recent days, FEMA and OMB concluded that these funds were being utilized at a rate of between $500 and $750 million per day. President Bush and our leadership made the decision to convene the Congress in an emergency session and move this supplemental to the President for his signature today.

We do not yet know how much the recovery from this disaster is going to cost. Our resolution today provides an immediate infusion of money to allow FEMA and the Department of Defense to address the most immediate needs resulting from this natural disaster. Costs associated with evacuation, emergency repairs, deployment of personnel, and other costs resulting from immediate relief efforts are included in this package.

This initial step today will ensure that there is no disruption in funding for relief efforts. We fully expect to be approving additional emergency funding in the coming weeks. Quite frankly, it will take some time to assess the full scope and cost of this disaster. Much of the damage is still underwater and the full extent is still unknown. Damage assessments will be collected from a great many Federal entities--FEMA, the Corps of Engineers, the Coast Guard--and others.

The destruction that has overtaken New Orleans and the Gulf Coast will require months, and even years, of intense effort to recover and rebuild. It will take nothing less than a domestic Marshall Plan to rebuild new roads, utilities, homes, and businesses. On this point, let me be very clear: Rebuild, we must. Rebuild, we will. Congress and the Bush administration is one-hundred percent committed to the rebuilding process and today's action is the first step.

One final thought as I conclude my remarks: There is no greater spirit than the American spirit responding to citizens in need. When we see suffering, we want to do something. We want to lend a hand. Many people are responding to this tragic circumstance by offering their prayers and opening their hearts and their checkbooks to organizations like the Salvation Army and the American Red Cross. I encourage my colleagues and our citizens to do the same in the days and weeks ahead.

Mr. Speaker, I reserve the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, I yield 1 minute to the gentleman from Missouri (Mr. Blunt), the distinguished majority whip.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself the balance of my time to close the debate on this measure and in doing so suggest that those who are looking with interest that one of the great things that has happened in recent years is that we often televise

our discussions here. While that theoretically would build a base of support on the part of Americans for the Congress, it is strange to me that the polling would suggest that many Americans are very disconcerted by the tendency for extreme rhetoric on both sides of the aisle often carrying on partisan battle for the sake of it and so the polls are just seen as coming down, down, down.

The reality of that is that the American people expect better of us than that. But Americans respond in times of crisis and tragedy. There is not any doubt that this tragic event that has been experienced by the people on the Gulf Coast is beyond imagination, but in reality also the public will see the Congress reflecting the best of our people. They do not want us pointing fingers at each other, trying to figure out who you can blame besides myself. They want us to recognize that we have a responsibility to serve our people, and in times of crisis especially respond to their basic needs, saving lives, extending those lives, helping them to begin to rebuild.

The destruction that has overtaken New Orleans and the Gulf Coast will require months and even years to completely respond to recovery. It will take nothing less than a domestic Marshall Plan to rebuild our roads and utilities and homes and businesses. On this point, let me be very clear. Rebuild we must. Rebuild we will. The majority whip suggested that Americans themselves are already responding individually. Indeed, as we responded to the tsunami in spades, Americans are already responding, with their hearts, with their prayers and indeed with their pocketbooks to the Salvation Army, the Red Cross and otherwise. They are going to make sure that money is not the question. We are beginning that process by way of our public responsibility today with this bill, but indeed in the weeks and months and years ahead, we will demonstrate as a Congress that America does its best work when we come together as Americans and not as partisans.

With the passage of this bill, this task is just beginning. I urge people on both sides of the aisle in the weeks ahead to make certain that we are holding hands with those victims and all of our Americans who want to see us respond in the way that we can respond and we are doing our best.

Mr. Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.

Mr. Speaker, reserving the right to object, I do not intend to object; but I think it would be helpful for Members to understand that if this proposal is agreed to, and I expect it to be, that there will be 5 minutes of debate on each side of the issue, and then any Member who wishes to comment will have an opportunity on a Special Order, which immediately follows, to do so.

I yield to the gentleman from California.

Continuing under my reservation, Mr. Speaker, I think it is important that if this motion is agreed to, I do think that the situation in the Gulf Coast is serious enough that it warrants more than a dog and pony show and that it warrants some thoughtful discussion of how problems like this might be avoided in the future. I would simply say under my reservation that I have been horrified watching my television set over the past few days as I moved around my district in Wisconsin to see the absolute inadequacy of the Federal response to what has occurred. I would hope that the magnitude of the disaster which we have seen would make

us all think through the degree of lack of discipline and denial that has marked this country's preparation for not just natural disasters but disasters of other origins as well.

Point one: I was personally appalled to see an interview with a representative of the Army Corps of Engineers in which he explained away our failure to prepare for anything worse than a level three hurricane for the New Orleans area by saying in essence that a cost- benefit analysis had been done, and it was concluded that it was not cost beneficial for us to prepare for anything above a level three hurricane. What that in essence says is that you are not going to worry about the biggest disasters that can occur; you are only going to worry about the smaller ones.

Whether it is with a hurricane or whether the action of the Mississippi River a number of years ago, how many times do we have to see disasters overwhelm our preparedness before we recognize that we are playing Russian roulette with people's lives, with their livelihood and with the life of whole communities if we do not prepare for the worst?

Point two: I think it is fair to say that the administration and the Congress itself has not covered itself with glory in terms of anticipating problems like this. We have seen the Congress in fiscal year 2004 cut the budget request by $170 million for FEMA. We have seen an amendment by the gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Moran) to try to supplement FEMA funding several years ago turned down by the House. We have seen flood control projects in the Gulf short-sheeted in Federal budget requests from the executive, and we have seen now stories, one by Sidney Blumenthal, which makes the point that in early 2001, FEMA management issued a report saying that a hurricane striking New Orleans was one of the three most likely disasters in the U.S., including a terrorist attack on New York City.

Yet the Federal budget has not demonstrated any serious response to that warning. And we have seen other comments as well in the paper, including a number by Louisiana papers, documenting the lack of effective Federal response. Another statement in the New York Times indicated that 5 days after Katrina hit, the response from our government was still spectacularly inadequate and in the words of the editorial amounts to a stunning lack of both preparation and urgency in the Federal Government's response. I would hope that the pictures that we have seen on our television sets would change that.

Continuing under my reservation, the third point I would simply make is that I think the devastation and utter destruction that we have seen indicates that we have a serious problem not just with respect to our response to natural disasters but in response to other potential disasters. I would hope that we would take to heart the lessons that this disaster ought to teach us about the need for more adequate preparation across the board, including potential terrorist attacks.

There are those of us in the Congress who still believe that we are not doing enough to secure our borders.

There are those of us who still believe that we are not doing enough to protect this country against terrorist attacks from air cargo.

There are those of us who believe that we are not doing nearly enough to protect this country against terrorist attacks by the use of containers in our ports; and in my view, the response of the administration and the Congress since 9/11 on that score has been totally inadequate.

I think that this disaster in the Gulf demonstrates the importance of ending the practice of casual thinking on these potential problems.

Point four: and I do not know the answer to this, but I know questions have been raised about whether or not the heavy involvement of our Guard and Reserve forces in Iraq is in any way linked to the fact that we have had so few Guard and Reserve personnel being used in response to this disaster. I do not know whether there is a direct causation or not, but I do know that there are some 11,000 Guard and Reserve forces from the affected States now in Iraq and those are obviously troops that cannot be used on their home ground.

I think we need to examine very carefully whether or not this demonstrates that we need to do more to build up the size of our regular Army forces so that we do have a greater capacity to use the Guard and Reserve forces at home when they are needed.

I would also say that every time that we have a disaster, Congress responds by tossing together an appropriation bill for an emergency appropriation. It would seem to me after all of the disasters that we have had that we should have a more regularized approach to the problem. I have introduced in the past, and I will introduce again, legislation asking that we establish an experience-rated insurance fund from which all States can purchase insurance coverage against future disasters so that you have a ready-made source of funding the moment these disasters hit.

There are five or six States in the Union that experience disasters on a fairly regular basis, and it seems to me that we need to have an experience-rated insurance system so that we take into full account the cost of hurricanes and the cost of other disasters that might occur. If we did that, we might see a greater level of preparation with respect to, for instance, long-term planning by the Corps of Engineers to deal with the most severe hurricanes.

Mr. Speaker, this legislation obviously has to pass, but I hope this represents just the beginning of some new thinking so that we do not wind up 3 or 4 years from now facing yet another problem as unprepared as we apparently were for this unfortunate and heart-rending incident.

Mr. Speaker, I withdraw my reservation of objection.

Mr. Speaker, I yield myself 3 minutes.

Mr. Speaker, by way of explanation, this bill provides $10.5 billion, $10 billion of which will go to FEMA, half a billion dollars to DOD. It provides for relief efforts for the aftermath of the Katrina hurricane. The funds to DOD will go to the operation and maintenance account with broad transfer authority. They will eventually wind up, I am certain, being used for procurement for housing and matters like that. The funds for FEMA may be used for any traditional purpose under the FEMA legislation, including public assistance, shelter, food, et cetera.

Let me simply say that I hope that we recognize this is just the initial downpayment in the costs that are going to be associated with this incredible disaster. I would also hope that we would recognize that we have for a long time been making inadequate investments in activities that could lessen the impact of disasters such as this, and I would hope we would recognize that values such as preventing this

horrendous event from occurring again ought to be much higher on our values scale than they have been in past months and certainly in past recent years.

Mr. Speaker, I would urge support of the legislation.

Mr. Speaker, I yield the balance of my time to the distinguished gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi), the minority leader.

Mr. President, first, my particular thoughts go to our colleague from Mississippi, the chairman of the Appropriations Committee, who has experienced visiting such devastation.

I have some idea of how he feels because less than 4 years ago--a little more than 4 years ago--I experienced the same in New York.

Tonight, our Nation is experiencing one of the most tragic and heartrending natural disasters in our history. Entire towns have been destroyed, lives upturned, families lost, and the chaos we have all watched unfold continues even tonight.

Our hearts go out to the people of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and all of the other Gulf States affected by Hurricane Katrina. Our prayers go out most of all to those still stranded and to those who have lost loved ones. The images on television are devastating--hungry, weeping children sitting on the street amidst garbage; family members returning to the destroyed remains of their neighborhoods discovering they have lost everything they have ever owned, from precious family keepsakes to their houses, cars, and livelihoods; and angry, frightened people with nowhere to go and no rescue in sight.

I join with all Americans and people all over the world in praying for the safe rescue of all the victims of this heartbreaking tragedy.

Four years ago, my city of New York faced a devastating attack, and America stood with us in our time of need. New Yorkers will stand with the people of the gulf region now as they stood with us then.

The love and support New Yorkers received from the rest of the country after 9/11 meant so much in the wake of those attacks and the long, difficult road to recovery. I want the people of New Orleans, Louisiana, Mississippi, and the rest of the gulf to know we will support them, too, no matter how long and difficult their recovery may be. We will do whatever it takes to help now, tomorrow, and into the future.

Our first step comes tonight, when the Senate will agree to provide $10.5 billion in desperately needed disaster relief funding to the devastated region. And we will stand unified with President Bush and ready to provide everything and anything that New Orleans and the rest of the gulf region will need to rebuild and recover. Just as we did after 9/11, this body and the entire Nation will work together to overcome this disaster. The American people are strong, and we will persevere.

Like so many Americans, I have been watching the terrible images on television, and I worry about the thousands of people still stranded in the Superdome and throughout the city and region without food, water, sanitary facilities, or medical treatment. I worry so very much about the desperately ill people, including small babies and frail seniors who need medical care, and the people who may still be trapped in places rescuers have not reached, people in attics who retreated to the attics as the waters rose and then were stuck there.

I know firsthand how difficult it can be to organize a massive rescue and recovery effort, and clearly this disaster is unprecedented in its scope and difficulty.

Tonight, a lot of people's lives still hang in the balance. Money for the long run is necessary, and that is why we are here tonight. But there is much more we must do immediately. We must focus all our efforts on rescuing those who are in need of medicine, who are hungry, thirsty, and frightened and despairing. We must get these people to shelter and to medical facilities immediately. We must fly in food, water, clothing, blankets, medicine, and whatever else is needed. We must get as many ships, buses, and trucks as we can, from wherever we can get them, to transport the victims and to begin clearing the wreckage. We must provide the soldiers and law enforcement needed to restore law and order--however many it takes.

This is literally a life-and-death crisis, where every moment of delay has a human price. There is not a minute to lose, no matter the cost.

I know the phones have been ringing off the hook in my office and those of my colleagues. Many have called asking where they can contribute. That act of generosity is also noted. We are hearing from our constituents who have heartfelt questions about what went wrong in this tragedy and what else could have been done to prevent it. At the moment, we must keep our total focus on saving lives. But I want them to know that their questions are not falling on deaf ears. In due time, after we have done everything to save those whose lives hang in the balance, we will ask those difficult questions--not to lay blame but to learn from the mistakes that were made so that the Nation will be better prepared for the next disaster we might face.

But now is the time for action, for solving these problems, and for saving the lives that hang in the balance. In the days and months ahead, this Nation will pull together united as we did after 9/11. We will do everything we can to help the victims and repair and rebuild the cities and towns in the gulf, especially the much beloved city of New Orleans.

Just as we did in New York, we will face difficulties and great sorrow, but I know I join all of my colleagues in the Senate in pledging assistance--financial and beyond--that the gulf region needs and anything else in our power to help our fellow citizens.

Tonight, our prayers--our fervent prayers--are with them.

Mr. Speaker, ``National Preparedness Month,'' an initiative of the Department of Homeland Security and the American Red Cross to ``encourage Americans to take simple steps to prepare for emergencies in their homes, businesses and schools'' began on September 1st. As the Ranking Member of the House Committee on Homeland Security, I serve as the Honorary Congressional Co-Chair.

I was filled with sadness and disbelief when a press release from the Department came across my desk on Thursday announcing the initiative, saying that it would help Americans take simple steps such as ``get a kit, make a plan, be informed, and get involved.'' The release seemed hollow and inappropriate in light of the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and my home State of Mississippi.

My message to the Department and others in government is simple: we will need more than a few emergency kits and press releases to ensure that our Nation is adequately prepared to respond to a natural disaster or terrorist attack.

Hurricane Katrina was an unprecedented natural disaster, but to government officials tasked with protecting our Nation's communities, it should not have been a surprise.

Risk assessments have long told us that the Gulf Coast was in danger. The New Orleans Times-Picayune did a series of articles as early as 2002 about the risks to New Orleans from a hurricane. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has created reports and conducted exercises on Gulf Coast preparedness and response issues. Yet, it pains me that here we are a week after the hurricane struck with potentially thousands of deaths, communities razed, a city underwater and under siege, and gasoline shortages and price gouging across the Nation.

From what I am seeing here in Mississippi, our government failed in both its preparedness and its response to this disaster. I also believe that if terrorists, rather than a hurricane, had attacked the Gulf Coast--the result would have been no different.

It appears our preparedness plans did not anticipate that thousands of people would be stranded in a stadium or convention center. Or that citizens would be roaming the streets begging for food and water and seeking shelter wherever they can find dry spots--as they're doing in Mississippi.

Instead of a well-prepared plan, victims have had to rely on ad hoc charity from cities with big hearts such as Houston that are opening up venues to house now-homeless evacuees.

I have even heard that people are being put on two-day bus rides to Washington, DC, for shelter. While Washington should be commended for opening the DC Armory to victims, there is something wrong with having to put evacuees who have lost everything on buses for several days so far from what might be left, if anything, of their communities.

How will families and friends of these evacuees know how to find them? The same could be asked of those who are being turned away from the Astrodome and moved on to Dallas or San Antonio.

I also wonder how an electrical outage could take down such critical infrastructure as two oil and gas pipelines servicing a large section of the country? In 1998, President Clinton issued a presidential directive that required the government to look at pipeline and electrical grid security. In December 2003, President Bush issued a homeland security directive that repackaged the government's efforts.

The last several years in Congress, we have continually heard that the administration and private sector are working to secure our critical infrastructure. Yet, a power outage managed to cripple the pipelines, resulting in skyrocketing gas prices across the Nation. Overnight, some communities saw gas prices rise 40 cents, others $2.00.

What message does this send to terrorists if our petroleum systems are so vulnerable? I also wonder what extra steps the Federal Government and the energy sector are taking today to ensure that these facilities are bolstered against attack from terrorists who might try to exploit the current situation.

Despite the increasing threat of hurricanes, especially this year, our government continued to cut the funding of the Army Corps of Engineers, thereby cutting the funding for flood control projects. In 2005, President Bush only requested $3.9 million for the floor projects in New Orleans, although the Army Corps of Engineers said it would be able to spend $20 million if the funds were only provided. Congress increased the funding to $5.5 million, which still was insufficient to fund new construction contracts to secure the levees. For Fiscal Year 2006, the President has asked for even less, requesting only $3 million. Allowing dams and levees to remain vulnerable to disaster and attack simply is unacceptable.

The administration must focus on the very real threats to our communities, towns, and cities if we are to secure our Nation. Preparedness is our prime defense against natural disasters and terrorist attacks. What Americans face today is a result of what happens when our government fails to prepare.

Natural disaster or terrorist attack--our government must do better. We all deserve better.