ROBERT SIEGEL, host:
Today, President Bush did visit the storm-ravaged Gulf Coast. He traveled in a low-flying helicopter and on foot, touring hard-hit neighborhoods in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. He finished in New Orleans, where relief efforts have stumbled and where order has failed. NPR's David Greene reports on the president's day and his effort to counter a wave of criticism about the federal response.
DAVID GREENE reporting:
To understand how frustrated people in New Orleans are with federal officials and the relief effort of the past three days, all you had to do was listen to the mayor, Ray Nagin, breaking down as he spoke to WWL Radio in New Orleans last night.
Mayor RAY NAGIN (New Orleans): I need reinforcements. I need troops, man. I need 500 buses. You know, one of the briefings we had, they were talking about getting public school bus drivers to come down here. I'm, like, `You got to be kidding me. This is a national disaster.'
GREENE: Such emotional pleas came from all over the region. But until today, the response from the White House was that the government was doing all it could. This morning, when President Bush stepped onto the South Lawn before boarding his helicopter, he struck a different tone.
President GEORGE W. BUSH: A lot of people working hard to help those who've been affected, and I want to thank the people for their efforts. The results are not acceptable. I'm heading down there right now.
GREENE: His first stop was an airplane hangar in Mobile, Alabama. Mr. Bush received a briefing from elected officials and emergency workers. One pilot told the president about flying over houses on the coast as residents stood on their roofs, waving flashlights for help. When he would pull a family to rescue, they would tell their rescuers about friends up the street who didn't have the luxury of a flashlight.
The president stood with governors, as well as Mississippi Republican Senator Trent Lott, whose own coastal home was destroyed.
Pres. BUSH: We got a lot of rebuilding to do. Of course, we're going to save lives and stabilize the situation, and then we're going to help these communities rebuild. The good news is--and it's hard for some to see it now--that out of this chaos is going to come a fantastic Gulf Coast, like it was before. Out of the rubbles of Trent Lott's house--he's lost his entire house--there's going to be a fantastic house, and I'm looking forward to sitting on the porch.
GREENE: After his briefing, the president choppered to Biloxi, Mississippi, His motorcade had to weave around felled trees and debris strewn all over the street. In town he met and embraced local residents, some of whom said they lost everything but the clothes they were wearing. He was asked by a reporter about some of the criticism, specifically whether National Guard troops serving in Iraq should be home helping with the relief effort.
President GEORGE W. BUSH: I just completely disagree. We've got a job to defend this country in the war on terror, and we've got a job to bring aid and comfort to the people of the Gulf Coast, and we'll do both. We got plenty of resources to do both.
GREENE: In the late afternoon, the president finally landed in New Orleans. He took a helicopter tour of the virtually submerged city, including the 17th Street levee that failed. One of his tour guides was Ray Nagin, the mayor who fiercely criticized the relief effort earlier. The two men landed at Louis Armstrong International Airport, where television images all afternoon showed evacuees arriving to be airlifted out.
Some in wheelchairs, some apparently missing limbs. The president seemed to be speaking with an understanding of the enormity of the damage.
Pres. BUSH: You know, I'm going to fly out of here in a minute, but I want you to know that I'm not going to forget what I've seen. I understand the devastation requires more than one day's attention.
GREEN: David Greene, NPR News, the White House.
Copyright © 2005 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of use and permissions pages at www.npr.org for further information.
Accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript text may be revised to correct errors or match updates to audio. Audio on npr.org may be edited after its original broadcast or publication. The authoritative record of NPR’s programming is the audio record.