This week, the President took responsibility for the inadequate response of our nation’s government and commented, ‘To the extent the federal government didn't fully do its job right, I take responsibility.’  I support the decision of President Bush to remove Michael Brown from the ground operation in New Orleans and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Director’s subsequent decision to resign.  I am hopeful in the abilities and experience of Vice Admiral Thad Allen to lead a swift and effective relief effort in the Gulf States and in acting FEMA director David Paulison, chosen by President Bush to be the acting FEMA director in response to Michael Brown’s resignation. 

I personally am calling for a bi-partisan commission, much like the 9-11 Commission, to conduct a full investigation as to what went wrong in the relief efforts in the immediate days and weeks following Hurricane Katrina’s relentless destruction.  However, right now, today, our energy and resolve should focus on rebuilding efforts in Louisiana and Mississippi and assisting those who have lost their homes, their jobs, and have been tasked with making a new life. 

In response to the hurricane, Congress has allocated $62.3 billion for Emergency Supplemental Appropriations for Disaster Relief in the vast 90,000 square mile region affected by Hurricane Katrina.  I have co-sponsored legislation which would re-establish FEMA as an independent agency in the executive branch.  The legislation mandates that the Director of FEMA be a cabinet-level official, report directly to the President, and establishes two Deputy Directors within FEMA, one to focus on natural disasters and one for terrorism related disasters. 

I voted in support of H. Res.425, which expresses condolences of the nation to victims of Hurricane Katrina.  It commends the resiliency and courage of the people of Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama and expresses the commitment to provide the necessary resources and to stand by the people affected by Hurricane Katrina in the relief, recovery and rebuilding efforts. 

In Arkansas’s Fourth Congressional District, I have visited with hurricane victims and listened to their concerns, their fears, and will respond to their needs.  As your Representative in Congress, I remain steadfast in my commitment to assisting victims of one of our nation’s worst natural disasters in Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama and to those who have fled to neighboring states for their safety. 

“Today, I voted against H.Res. 437, legislation that would create a partisan committee, comprised of Members of Congress, to investigate the federal government’s response to Hurricane Katrina,” said Ross.  “Since Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast more than two weeks ago, I have been calling for a non-partisan and independent commission, not a committee consisting of Members of Congress to investigate what went wrong in the government’s response to this disaster.” 

“This is why I have co-sponsored legislation, H.R. 3764, which would create an independent Katrina Commission, much like the 9/11 Commission, to evaluate the federal government’s response to the hurricane,” Ross continued.  “A 9/11 styled commission will provide answers for what went wrong so that we can learn from our past mistakes and be better prepared with a fast and effective response for future disasters on American soil, whether it is a natural disaster or a terrorist attack.  The creation of an investigative commission is not about politics or pointing fingers, it is about explaining to the victims of Hurricane Katrina, the residents of the Gulf Coast, and the American people where the breakdown in the local, state and federal response occurred and preventing an inadequate response to future catastrophes.  The American people deserve answers – and they deserve accurate, credible answers that would result from an independent investigation – just as the 9/11 Commission so effectively accomplished.”

In 1991, as a State Senator, Ross successfully passed a Senate rule requiring the Arkansas State Senate to open each day with the Pledge of Allegiance, a rule they continue to this day.